Knee Deep in the River
by YumKiwiDelicious
Summary: "This whole feud and the reason behind it has gone as milky as your eye, and I don't know if we'll ever see daylight again when it has done with us." HATFIELDS & MCCOYS. Eventual Cap/OC with lots of Cotton-Top love. R&R!
1. Hatfields & McCoys

West Virginia, 1874  
Election Day

"Ellison! Come _down_ from there, our Pa is sure to see you up there!" I cried, near pitching back onto my rear as I craned my neck back to stair up into the tree my twin brother had scaled. A heavy August breeze rolled through the surrounding forest, picking at the edges of my white pantalets beneath my brown dress.

"Look at me, Abigail!" Ellison shouted, swinging haphazardly from a tree branch, one arm waving wilding at me. I gasped in fright, tiny hands fisting in my pinafore. The wind tore at Ellison's impossibly white hair, throwing it across his brow as he laughed manically.

"Ellison, you better come down right now!" I hollered, throat starting to hurt from the efforts of all my shouting. "Papa and Ms. Staton will leave without us, now hurry up!" At the mention of possibly being made to stay behind and miss the election day festivities, my brother's features darkened visibly, even from this great distance.

"Daddy's gon' leave without me?" he called, small voice no longer booming in laughter. He pulled himself back up onto the branch and I let out a huff of relief, pushing my yellow curls back away from my face.

"He will if you do not hurry!" I lied. Papa would never leave us, especially not Ellison, but he was wasting time. With a nod of his snowy white head, he ran across the branch, reaching the base of the tree before I even had time to shriek. How he'd managed to climb the great oak was a mystery really since it was stripped bare for nearly the first ten feet. He slid down it, the bark tearing at his shirt and trousers. By the time he reached me, he looked a mess and the good Lord only knew where his hat had gone to. I frowned at him, taking his hand in mine as we made a run for the front of the cabin.

"Abi, is you mad at me?" my brother asked, his red rimmed eyes wide in childish fear. I spared him the briefest of glances as we came to the far side of the porch.

"You know I ain't, Elli," I confessed as our Pa caught sight of us from his spot holstering our old mare, Trixie, to the wagon.

"Well, get a wiggle on you two," he called with a laugh as we ran towards his, "We're runnin' late as it is!"

"Sorry, Daddy," we chimed, waiting patiently to be lifted in the wagon one at a time. I was sat in the back with my pa's wife, Sarah Staton. Like always, Ellison got to sit upfront next to Papa. I did not mind it. Elli had always been Papa's favorite because he was the boy. The only boy.

With a light 'yah', my Pa spurred the horse and the wagon jerked into motion. We bumped along to the road, straightening out to head towards the bridge that would carry us over into Kentucky territory.

I settled down in my seat, glancing shyly at Ms. Staton who had her sour face turned to the side. She did not much care for Ellis and myself. Most likely because we were the children of a woman Papa had had an affair with. At seven and a half years old, I did not know what an affair was, but I knew that Ms. Staton was not our Mama. Our Mama had passed on into heaven with the angels after giving birth to me and Ellis. My Uncle Wall even told it that she had died while still in labor with Ellis and that's why he'd come out the way he had. Albino and slow. I did not know if I believed him.

"Daddy, can I hold the reins?" I looked over my shoulder as Ellison spoke, pale eyes fixed on my father's hands which never shook or strayed in their task. The thick bearded man laughed and nodded, motioning Ellison into his lap so that he could help him. Other boys would be considered too old to crawl into their Pa's lap, but Elli was special and Pa never much cared what other people told him to do with his son.

Turning around, I caught Ms. Staton's nasty sneer before she looked away again. She hated Ellison. Even more than she hated me _because_ he was Albino and slow. I'd heard her telling Papa one night when we were already meant to be in bed that he was 'an embarrassment on her'. She had made breakfast the following morning with a powerful dark bruise upon her cheek. I pretended I did not notice her glare now and took to my knees in my seat so that I could see over the front of the carriage.

"Papa, are we near?" I asked, wind whipping through my hair. I was not yet old enough to wear it in fancy ties and such as other girls did. At least that is what Papa told me.

"Nearly to the bridge now, Abi," he said, sparing me a smile before refocusing on the horse. "Sit tight and we won't be long, I promise." With a sigh I settled down again, leaning in and unladylike fashion against the carriage side. Kicking my foot out, I looked down as it caught on something on the carriage floor.

"Ellison, I found your hat," I called over the clamber of our wheels over dirt as I picked up the black cap and dusted it off. Standing now on wobbly legs, I reached around my father's shoulder to place it on Elli's head. It fell over his eyes and his head whipped to the side.

"Careful, Abi," Papa laughed, adjusting both hat and boy. "We don't want him to drive us into the Big Sandy River."

Ellison laugh was like a bell chime as Trixie stepped onto the manmade bridge. The uneven logs caused the cart to tilt slightly and I clutched the back of my father's coat with a tiny yelp. He laughed, reaching back to pat my hand comfortingly as we cleared the short bridge. Now on this side of the river, it was easy to see there was an event going on as many other people in carriages were passing by, all head in the same direction. Some passed on foot, waving up at Ellison as we merged into the crowd.

"Hi!" He waved happily back, dropping one end of the rein, but not having to worry since Papa picked it up immediately.

"How about I drive the rest of the way son?" he suggested. Ellison nodded, standing to full height right on our father's legs and clambering over the carriage side to join me in the back. "Be careful, boy!"

"Abi, you excited?" Elli questioned, not having heard Pa's warning as he still stood in the moving carriage. I sat to set example and he soon followed to be closer to me. "Johnse, Will, and Rob will be there."

At the mention of our older male cousins, my nose scrunched. I never much cared for my Uncle Anderson's boys. Johnse was the oldest at twelve, William was near around ten, and Rob had just turned seven in the spring. They were loud and rambunctious and always wanting to rough house with Elli even though he was far too small for such games. In addition, they enjoyed calling him 'Cotton-Top' on account of his albinism. I did not approve of the name, but Elli beamed whenever they called him by it. I feared it would soon pick up with the other boys.

"That's right, Elli," Papa called, urging Trixie on a bit faster now. "And, Abi, Victoria and Nancy shall be present."

I perked up at this. Victoria was my uncle Wall's daughter of twelve and Nancy was Johnse and Will's sister of five. Three of us always had fun together, though nowadays Victoria was more interested in spending time with Johnse. I did not understand this new behavior.

"Look, look, look!" Elli suddenly shouted, high voice making my ears ring. He was jumping up and down on the carriage floor as he pointed wildly over Papa's shoulder. "There they are!"

Standing up as well, I saw that he was pointing out our kin, gathered to one side of the small clearing that was all done up with red, white, and blue decoration. With a delighted 'woop' Ellison jumped from the carriage and nearly got his arm caught under the wheel. Papa cursed as he jerked Trixie to a stop, the sudden lurch of the carriage sending me tumbling off the side to land on the leafy ground.

"Papa!" I cried indignantly as Elii righted himself and ran to greet our extended family. With a shake of his head, my father climbed out of the carriage to pluck me up from the ground.

"Y'all right there, lil' angel?" he asked, brushing down my front gently. I nodded, still mad at Ellison as he gave me a light pat on the rear. "I'm gonna go situate Trixie, go see your cousins – keep an eye on your brother." With that he turned away from me to help Ms. Staton down from the carriage.

Running a hand through my rumbled curls, I followed Ellison's path straight to our kinship, picking up my skirts needlessly as I approached. Coming up to them, I was greeted by the sight of my aunt Lavicy with two babies in her arms [Elliot and Mary] and Nancy clinging to her skirts, my Uncle Anderson talking with my Uncle Wall, Elli already playing with Will and Rob, and Victoria staring dreamily at Johnse who was calling out teases to Elli.

"Don't let 'em tag you, Cotton," he laughed, voice deeper than it had been when I'd seen him last. Victorie sighed in a funny sort of way and I frowned at her. That girl was an odd one.

"Abigail, why you shot up like a weed," my aunt Lavicy said, smiling warmly at me, dark hair twisted onto the top of her head as she rocked her babies gently. I smiled, going over to stand on tip toe to peer into their blankets. It was easy to tell which was which since Elliot was a year older and already much bigger than his sister.

"Hello," I greeted, rocking back on my heels. I'd just turned to say hello to Nancy when Elli bumped into me, knocking me to the ground.

"Will, stop all that foolishness," Lavicy scolded. I assumed he had pushed Ellison into me. "You've gone and knocked your cousin over with not even a proper greeting, now apologize."

Nancy helped me politely to my feet, thumb in mouth as she glanced over my shoulder at her brother. Turning, I brushed myself off and glared as heatedly as I could at William Anderson Hatfield. He was skinny boy, with a shot of blonde hair just like his older brother and a crooked smile. We'd never gotten on too well.

"Sorry, Abigail," he said, far too sweetly for it to be genuine. He took his riding hat from his head, bowing low at the waist like a proper gentleman. Lord, but I wanted to spit on his boots.

"It's alright, William," I said lowly, glancing out of the corner of my eye at Elli who was doing his best to hide in Victoria's skirts. "It was an accident."

"Truly," Johnse laughed, thumping his rifle butt against the ground, startling Ellison, who scurried around to stand by Nancy. The young girl regarded him pleasantly enough before reaching up to pet his silvery head like a dog. She was not one for words, even at five. Elli sighed contently, leaning into her hand, and the boys laughed.

"Perhaps she should keep him as a pet," Will chuckled, stepping back as I glared at him. Rob laughed unsurely, no doubt missing the joke but wanting to be in with his brothers. Johnse waved it off, returning his attention to Victoria who beamed at the recognition. Strange girl.

"Anderson!" We all turned as my father approached, Sarah Staton in toe, arms wide to be greeted.

"Hey, brother, where you been keepin' yourself?" my uncle laughed, hugging his younger sibling and tipping his hat to his sister-in-law. It was my belief that no one in the family much liked her. The three Hatfield brothers became enveloped in a conversation as I felt a tug on my sleeve. It was Ellison.

"Abi, come play with us," he urged excitedly, smiling brightly at me from beneath his platinum fringe. I glanced around him to see Johnse, Will, and Rob all waiting expectantly, half way to the center of the clearing. Nancy had gone out of sight with her mother and baby siblings, and Victoria was pouting off to the side. With a huff, I realized I had no reason _not _to play with them.

"Alright," I conceded lowly, regretting it immediately as Elli grabbed my hand and yanked me after our cousins. We ran to where the carriages were settled and Johnse immediately stepped up to play leader.

"I say we play a war game," he declared, proudly holding his gun across his front. His brothers were not yet old enough to carry guns. Rob whined in annoyance.

"It's no fun if the rest of us ain't got no guns, Johnse."

"Yeah, and Abigail can't play no war games, she's a girl." I bristled at Will's statement, ready to defend myself when Ellison spoke up.

"Yeah huh she can!" he affirmed rather loudly, my hand still clutched in his. "She plays 'em with me all the time!"

"That don't count, Cotton-Top,"Johnse huffed, leaning on his rifle, obviously still peeved about having his idea shot down. Again I was prepared to make a statement when a voice came from one of the carriage beds.

"Well, well, well." A boy stepped up onto the seat of the carriage directly behind Johnse. The blonde jumped, back tracking so that he stood with us. "What do we have here?" He had auburn hair and was tall for probably only being a few years older than Johnse. His voice was deep too.

Jeff McCoy.

Another boy came to stand beside him. He was between hay and grass, shorter and stockier than his brother but obviously still of the blood.

Bud McCoy.

"Looks like a couple a Hatfields," Bud sneered, glaring at us all in turn. Rob made a small whimpering sound and grabbed hold of Ellison's hand. Elli, who had not allowed the smile of playtime to leave his face, looked curiously at our cousin.

"Why you holdin' my hand?" he asked innocently, ignoring the fact that he held mine for no good reason all the time, now included.

"Hey look, they've got the retard with 'em." The two boys laughed and I could feel my cheeks grow warm with fury. Nobody on God's green earth was allowed to speak of my brother that way.

Releasing Ellison's hand, I stepped forward and scooped up a hand full of dirt. Standing straight again, I flung it at the still laughing boys. "You shut your traps!" The clump of soil caught Bud square in the face, causing his to flail recklessly before falling backwards into the carriage. Ellison laughed loudly, pink tongue exposed to the world as Jefferson spun around to glare at him.

"You just shut up, you mush-head you!" Elli took pause, confused at his tone. Weren't we all just having fun? "You ain't nothin' but a dumb bastard with no kin! And your sister's a mighty blowhard!"

Elli looked fit to cry and I prepared to grab another wad of dirt when suddenly Will was there between us, grabbing mine and Elli's hands. He raised his chin to the fifteen year old boy as if he were only five.

"That's big talk for a boy with no daddy," he spat out quickly. I was gob smacked. We all knew about what happened to Harmon McCoy. Hell it was why our families were always fighting, but I'd never heard anyone, not even the men, bring it up the way William just had. Turning to look up at Jeff, I saw his ears bleed red with anger as his hands balled into fists.

"Don't you talk ill of my Pa," he growled before jumping down to the ground in front of us. Will jerked us back, looking off to the side. Johnse had gone. Coward.

There was no time to dwell on the fact however as Jeff moved to aim a swing at us. Will faked right before running left, dragging myself, Elli, and Rob behind him. I heard Jefferson curse as he was nearly tossed to the ground by his own momentum before he came tearing after us.

"Get back here, Hatfields!" he yelled. The entire congregation turned at this to see five children lighting out from some hidden location to tear across their pleasant festivities.

"Pa!" William and I called in unison, causing each our fathers to turn curiously. At the sight of a McCoy hot on our heels, my uncle Anderson stepped forward, picking me up and away along with Ellison who he passed to my Papa. Will and Rob hid behind his legs.

"What the devil's goin' on here?" he questioned, taking a firm stance in front of Jefferson who backtracked into his own uncle's chest. Randolph McCoy looked fit to be tide as he scowled at my Uncle Anderson. Bud was stood behind him, surrounded by his 4 remaining siblings and 16 cousins. McCoys had always unfairly outnumbered us.

"They called my pa names," Jefferson fumed, being held back by Mr. McCoy whose eyes snapped to Will menacingly. Will ducked back behind his Pa.

"That ain't true, Uncle Anse!" I whined, gripping the man's collar desperately. "Him and Bud was callin' Elli all sorts a cruel things!"

"Liar!" Bud yelled, looking ready to run at us but being held back by his cousin Tolbert who glared at all of us almost as heatedly as his Pa. I hugged my uncle around the neck.

"Weren't nothin' but childish words, Randolph," he called between the space that divided us. "We don't need to start nothin' here."

"Says you, Hatfield," the man growled, spitting tobacco to the ground angrily. Other people were either beginning to gather or depart as they sensed a Hatfield and McCoy fight cooking. Baby Elliot started to cry from behind us.

"Let's just go home," my Pa cut in, patting Ellison comfortingly on the back. "Ain't no need for all this mess in front a children."

Off to the side, I noticed Johnse standing next to his mother, gazing into the sea of McCoys. Turning to them, I wondered what or who had caught his interest when I noticed a pretty blonde girl a few years older than him casting him a perturbed look. Obviously she did not like being stared at in such a fashion by a boy of twelve. I recognized her as Roseanna McCoy.

"You keep your kin away from mine," Randolph spoke again, completely ignoring my Pa's suggestion as he faced off with my uncle. I looked up at him and he did not look near as angry as everyone else. Just plum wore out.

"And you do the same," he said at last. And turning on his heal with Will and Rob still holding onto his trousers, he trudged away from the McCoys. I watched from over his shoulder as the large family departed, nearly every male throwing a dirty look our way as they went.

"Uncle Anderson?"

"Yes, angel?"

"Why do the McCoys hate us so much?" I questioned. "Is it just because of what happened to Mr. McCoy's brother?" My uncle sighed tiredly, supporting me with one arm as he reached down to run a hand through Rob's hair. Looking over, I saw my father doing much that same thing to Ellison. Sons. They got all the love.

"Well, yes and no, sweetie," he stated, bringing me out of his arms to sit on a stack of crates. I tilted my head at him in confusion, curls falling over my shoulder as he chuckled. Rob and Will ran off to talk with Elli in our cart. "There's a lot more to it than that, but I doubt you'd understand til you're a bit older."

"How much older?" I wondered. Would I have to wait til I was Johnse's age? My uncle laughed again, genuinely this time and tapped his finger on the tip of my nose.

"I'll let you know." Glancing over my shoulder, he nodded in one direction before he gestured to someone in another. Turning back to me he placed his hands on my shoulders. "I don't want you hanging around those McCoys though, you hear?"

"What about Trinvilla and Nancy," I asked, remembering the two girls closest to my age in the McCoy bunch. Granted Nancy had become surely after she heard what her cousins had to say about our families involvement in her Pa's death.

"'Fraid not, sugar," he shook his head before dropping a kiss to my curls. I heard something strike the crate I sat on and looked down to see William there, large stick in hand and hat gone.

"Watch your cousin while her Pa and I get the carriages ready," his Pa ordered before making to leave.

"Yes, Pa," Will said, throwing the stick away from him as he sat down by my feet. He looked up at me, yanking at the edge of my dress. I swatted him away. "Was you scared today?"

"Scared a what?" I asked, annoyed for some reason as he clambered up to sit next to me. We had to squish together just so neither of us would fall. I wished he'd stayed on the ground.

"A the McCoys," he clarified, looking out to where the family was packing up. Bud caught him staring and swatted at Jefferson's arm. The two of them sent us hateful glares before dissapering. Probably to go find their mother.

"Nah, our pas ain't scared of them, so I ain't neither," I lied. I'd been a bit scared.

"Me neither," Will huffed, looking away. I had a feeling he was lying too. I looked down at my lap, kicking my feet out awkwardly. We had never spent much alone time together, William and I.

"Thanks for stickin' up for Ellison," I mumbled finally. He gave me a funny look and I shrugged in my dress.

"Well I was stickin' up for you too," he informed. "Not just Cotton-Top."

My nose scrunched.

"Why do you call him that?" I asked, placing my small hands on my nonexistent hips. "He has a name, ya know?" Again Will cast a look as if I was crazy.

"It's just a nickname," he huffed, shifting, "Like how we call Johnson Johnse. We do it cause we like 'im." My eyebrows rose at this. It had never occurred to me that the name had been a term of endearment.

"Oh…"

"Yeah…"

We grew silent.

"Abi! We's leavin'!" I turned to see Ellison waving from the driver's seat of our carriage. Any sadness that had touched him with the McCoy encounter seemed to have lifted and he smiled open mouthed at me as he waved me over.

"Alright!" I hopped down from the crate, taking a second to look up into my cousin's dark eyes. I smiled. "Bye, Will!" I ran off then, skirt bouncing up around my knees as I went to the carriage. I never heard if William replied or not.

"Bye…Abigail…"


	2. Braiding Hair

**Character Bio for Abigail Mounts can be found on my deviantart page, link on my profile**

West Virginia, 1877  
New Years Eve

"Ouch! Ellison! Do no pull so roughly!" I chided, twisting around in my seat to look at my shame faced brother. His pale fingers were woven deeply into my honey curls as he attempted to braid them. He was no good at such things, but imagined he was and I was not a vain girl, so I had no cause to deny him the practice.

"Sorry, Abi," he said almost in a whisper, crossed legs bumping against my back. We sat on the porch of our cabin, facing out into the forest. Ms. Staton sat away from us, sewing up one of Papa's old shirts. I did not know if she knew Papa intended to give the red shirt to Elli. It was to be his present for the New Year. I did not know what mine would to be.

"Abigail!" the woman called out to me sharply. I turned to her, not concerned if the movement caused Ellison's braid to go even more crooked than it was. "When will your Pa be returnin'?"

"I ain't sure, Miss," I answered truthfully. I could not even fathom why she would ask me.

With another hard yank of my hair that had me wincing in pain, Elli declared the braid 'done!' and jumped up to haul me to my feet. We did not have a proper looking glass –Papa shaved using the bottom of pans- so I could not see what my hair looked like. Instead I simply reached a hand up and smoothed it down the length of the braid, smiling at all the bumps and knots and wayward hairs. I affirmed the work as 'lovely' and hugged my twin in thanks. He squeezed me more tightly than what was appropriate but I did not mind. Ellison was simply blessed with more heart than others.

As we parted, there was noise from up the road. It sounded like a small group of people approaching. Looking over, I saw Sarah reach for the riffle resting against her chair. Taking Ellison's hand, I stepped down from the porch and ushered him under the walk up steps and squeezed in beside him. This was where Papa always told us to hide in case of trouble.

"What're we doin' down here?" Elli asked confusedly. I shushed him, squinting through the breaks in the stairs as the party came over the hill in front of our cabin. "It's Uncle Floyd!" Ellison was off like a shot, knocking me down in his rush to greet my father's uncle. The young man laughed loudly as he saw his great nephew approaching.

"Hey there, Cotton!" he saluted, putting a heavy hand on my twin's shoulder. I picked myself up from the ground. "Where's your pa?"

"He's out," Elli informed, jumping as someone yanked on his hair from behind. It was our cousin Rob. The two were off on an impromptu game of chase before more could be said on the matter of my father's whereabouts. Floyd shook his head, laughing good naturedly as he watched them go. I had always thought it was strange that Floyd was technically my Pa's uncle since he was only four years older than Johnse who had just turned fifteen this past year.

"Hey there, Abigail." Thinking of Johnse, he was the first one to greet me from atop his father's cart which was just now pulling up to our porch. The better part of our family had all come down to celebrate the New Years with us. I waved at him, still picking leaves from my hair from when Elli had pushed me down.

"Hello."

As our family began to spill through and around the cabin, I could see Ms. Staton greeting my aunts Jane, Martha, Lavicy and Elizabeth. Floyd's wife, as well as his siblings, did not look to be in attendance. Seeing that Ellison had been drawn away by our male cousins and I had not yet spotted Victoria or Nancy, I took to sitting on our porch steps, hoping my Pa would soon return so that we might start eating out back.

"Ow!" My braid was snatched up in a rather vicious tug that nearly sent me falling to the side of the steps. Yanking away, I turned and was met with the laughing eyes of William Hatfield. "Will!"

"Hey, Abi," he greeted, lowering himself to sit beside me, voice deep as his brother's now. He had grown taller over the last few years and he'd lost most of what my aunt Lavicy called 'baby-fat'. He was still wiry however, and did not have the muscle tone of his older brother.

"Hey yourself," I grumbled, rubbing my scalp where my braid tugged. His brothers and sisters were all gathered at the far end of our porch talking animatedly about something. It looked to me that Johnse was leading the conversation. I made to join them when Will tugged the back of my dress and made me sit again. "Stop pullin' on me!"

"Why don't you stay and talk with me?" he snapped, scowling at me. I scowled right back. We'd gotten on far better after the Election Day incident three years prior, but sometimes we still had our tiffs.

"Why would I wanna talk with you?" I asked snidely. He looked about to give me a proper tongue lashing when Ms. Staton suddenly stood from her seat surrounded by her sisters-in-law.

"Well it's about time!" she called out to my Pa whom had just cleared the hill in our carriage, Sarah's brother, William, seated beside him. The two men waved, laughing from something that had clearly been said out of ear shot.

"Daddy!" Ellison leapt from his spot next to Johnse, running head on at the carriage. His quick movements and loud voice spooked Trixie and she reared back on her hinders, heavy hooves slicing the air. I gasped, making to run forward and grab my brother, but Will held me back with a hand on my shoulder.

"Whoa, girl," my Pa soothed the horse, backing her up until she could come down without crushing Elli. I let out a breath of relief, not forgetting to shove my cousin's hand away. He scoffed at me. "Son, I've told you, don't run up on a horse like that."

Ellison was unfazed. "Sorry, Daddy. Hi, Uncle Bill!"

It was easy enough to explain to Ellison that Ms. Staton was not to be referred to as our mother, but his understanding of the situation was limited to that. He still referred to Sarah's kin as if they were our own. It drove her batty, I could tell from the way she set her jaw against it. No one else seemed to mind though.

"Hey there, Cotton-Top," he greeted, hopping down from the cart top to squat down in front of him. "How are you?"

"Fine," Elli giggled lowly, turning away shyly and returning to the porch. I walked over, settling between him and Nancy in my skirts. Pa approached and informed that now was as good a time as any to head to the back of the house. Grabbing Ellison's hand, I lead my cousins around our cabin and into the back where Pa had set up makeshift tables and such for us to eat on. We didn't have no streamers and things but the lanterns hanging from low tree branches made the place look nice.

Everyone spread out to find a spot to sit then, children off to one side and adults off to the other. Johnsee and Victoria felt at liberty to go back and forth, since both were of age. I watched Victoria as she moved about in her skirts which were a deal longer than mine. She, like Johnse and Will, had gotten taller as of recent and she now tied her hair back, away from her face. I had to admit my cousin was very pretty, and fifteen seemed to suit her fine. I had heard Ms. Staton and Victoria's mother, Jane, speak once of how she would soon be of marrying age. Now _that_ sounded frightful.

Again there was a tug on my hair, and I turned to see Will pretending as if it had not been him. With a frown, I reached out and tugged on one of his locks, which hung longer than Ellison's. He yelped and I was quick to exit my seat at the children's table to run across the yard. He gave chase. We circled the adult's area and I saw that most of the other children had joined in as well, chasing each other here and there across the leafy ground. Will stayed on me though and chased me up onto the back porch.

"Abigail, not in the house!" I heard Sarah yell before being quieted by my Pa. I laughed, flinging the back door open wide so that it struck Will in the shoulder. He grunted, slowed down as I hurried into our kitchen and dove under the table, breathless from laughter. I quieted though as I heard him come through the room.

"Abi," he called, no longer sounding angry, but amused. I giggled behind my hand, backing away from where I'd heard his voice. The son was setting and with all the lanterns outside, it was dark in the house. I backed all the way out from under the table only to land on someone's shoe. "Gotcha!"

I shrieked as large hands grabbed my shoulders and pulled me up from the ground. My relief at remembering it was only William left as he began to tickle me mercilessly.

"No! William, quit it!" I laughed loudly, struggling to get away, but at thirteen, Will was bigger and stronger than me and could hold me back with just one arm while tickling me with the other. "Aha!"

"Surrender, Abigail!" he laughed into my ear, breath tickling my neck as he picked me up nearly off the ground. I squealed, kicking my legs out futilely.

"No!"

Our laughter was suddenly cut short by the sound of the back door slamming open. I gasped as Will set me down quickly, arm still around my stomach as we stared at Ms. Staton's silhouette in the doorway.

"Abigail Ruth Mounts!" she hissed, voice sounding as if it wanted to shout but staying in a whisper. "You stop this foolishness _right now_!" Stomping forward, she grabbed my arm roughly and yanked me away from William. "Playin' round in the dark with him like this – it's shameful!" Throwing a glare at Will she told him that his mother was asking after him before yanking me out the backdoor. I did not even get a chance to spare Will a glance over my shoulder.

Once we were outside again, she deposited me none to gently at the table most of the women were now situated at. Nancy and Victoria included. Nancy looked happy to see me while Victoria was giving me a rather scandalized look, just a few notches down from what Sarah had given me. I was so confused, all I could do was frown and stare down at my lap. I heard Will come up and speak briefly with his mother before departing. I could tell by the awkward silence that he had lingered a moment, but I had not looked up from my skirt.

"Victoria," Nancy spoke up suddenly, more accustomed to speaking now then she had been in younger years, "Do you have any suitors yet?" My head picked up at this, curious despite myself. Victoria did her best to look demure, but I could tell she was just bursting to tell us everything. She was a gossipy girl.

"Well," she began, lips turned up at the corners. "A man by the name of Plyant Mahon has approached my father about courting me."

"Is not Mahon close to your Pa's age?" I asked, face screwed up in distaste. I could never marry a man that was a pier to my father. Victoria's sharp eyes landed on me looking hateful.

"Age is just a number, Abigail," she explained righteously, "And besides, Mr. Mahon is very wealthy."

"So is Lorenzo Dow McCoy, but I do not see you rushing to marry _him_," I said thoughtlessly, "And he's only 25, not _46_."

Victoria and Nancy both gasped at me, Nancy's a bit more comical since it was a tad over exaggerated. "Abi," Victoria ground out lowly, eyes shifting uneasily to see if anyone had heard us. "You best not speak of such taboo things as marryin' a McCoy. You do not hold the Hatfield name, but the rest of us pride it and would not hear it slandered in such a way."

I did not take offense to her calling my word slander, but the unneeded add on of saying I was not of the Hatfield name was hurtful. With quivering lip, I stood from the table with a grumble of 'excuse me', and proceeded to the front of the house. I did not go far enough so that the light left me but the chatter of the back yard was mighty decreased at this distance. Picking up my skirts, I sat on the ground; legs tucked under me, and set myself to pouting. It was not often that people addressed my questionable heritage to my face, but it hurt every time they did.

"Abigail?" I did not look up at Will, instead choosing to pick at the twigs and rocks before me. I had heard him follow me. He lowered himself to the ground next to me, disturbing the dirt far more than I had. "My sister, Nancy, said my cousin may have said something to upset you?"

"She is my cousin _too_," I snapped, finally looking to him. He'd jumped when I spoke. "I am of the blood." Picking a particularly large rock, I hurled out into the darkness and heard it smack what sounded like the broad side of one of the carts. William lifted a curious brow at me. It was true, I was of the blood. I had Hatfield features in me, same as Ellison.

"Well a course you is," Will chuckled confusedly. I glanced at him. "Your daddy's a Hatfield ain't he?"

"That's just it," I grumbled, wrapping my arms around my bended knees to rest my chin atop them. "My daddy's a Hatfield, but Ellison and I ain't so folks think it is alright to claim we have no kin."

"I'm your kin," Will clarified, sounding almost insulted. I shrugged, not in the mood for such talk anymore. He sighed, picking at the leaves beneath us. He stared at me openly as I sighed again before glancing to my kinked braid. "Your hair needs tendin'."

"Elli did it," I huffed as way of explanation. He laughed, picking up the ponytail far more gently than he had before.

"Well I can _re_do it." I rolled my eyes as he positioned himself behind me. Legs bent at my sides.

"What do you know about braidin' hair?" I asked sarcastically, unfolding my arms to lean them on his knees. He was already unknotting the bottom with his thin fingers, not yanking on it any as Elli had.

"Nancy needs her hair plaited all the time," he explained, combing through my hair gently from scalp to end. I hummed lightly.

"And _you_ do it for her?" I inquired skeptically.

"We got no older sisters, and Ma's usually busy with Mary and Elizabeth." I nodded, believing this.

"You're lucky you got so many siblings," I said without thinking. "And another on the way," I added, recalling my aunt Lavicy's swollen belly. I felt Will shrug behind me, his chest near touching my back.

"I guess." He parted my hair with one finger right down the middle. I shivered and giggled. He began to braid one side. He was giving me pigtails. "Abi?"

"Yeah huh?"

"I think you's as good a Hatfield as any." I blinked at this, a pleasant feeling filling me up from head to toe.

"R-Really?"

"Is your daddy a Hatfield?"

"Yes."

"Do you hate the McCoys?"

"I do not know." He flicked the back of my head. "Ow!" I laughed, "Yes!"

"Well then that's all I need to know." He threw the first braid over my shoulder and I saw that it was secured with a bit of leather he must've pulled from his pocket. I fingered it, smiling.

"So I'm a Hatfield then?"

"Damn certain." I gasped at his language, moving to pull away. He held me back, already starting on the other braid. "Don't let Victoria get to ya, she's just jealous."

"A what?" I asked innocently, trying to peak at him over my shoulder. He avoided my gaze continuing silently with the second braid til it was finished. Pulling a loose bit of string from his shirt sleeve, he tied it off and handed it to me. I smoothed my fingers over it, smiling. It was pretty.

I was about to thank him when suddenly he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the back of my head between my braids. My Pa did things like that usually, my uncles too, but none of my cousins ever had and I blinked in surprise.

"She knows you're gonna be a better Hatfield than she ever was," he concluded, patting my side comfortingly before standing. He helped me up, brushing off my dress for me before tugging lightly on the end of one of my braids. I smiled, throwing myself into his arms.

"I love you, William," I said into his shirt, feet dangling a bit off the ground. "You're my favorite cousin."

"I'm gonna tell Nancy you said that," he chuckled lowly, the sound rolling through my body. Laughing, I pulled away and left him there. I ran back to the back of the house to show Nancy and Ellison my braids. The two of them were mighty impressed, though Elli was a bit sore at first.

"You didn't like my braid?" he'd asked, eyes glassy.

"It was a fine braid, Ellison," I assured him, hand on his upper arm, "But Will messed it all up on accident." He seemed to accept this answer, sniffing as he nodded.

When William came back around, Nancy ran over demanding pigtails as well, followed closely by Ellison who wanted to learn how to do them. Will had shot me a look beneath his dirty blonde fringe and I just smiled back at him. He took them to the back porch, Nancy situated between his legs and Ellison leaning over his shoulder as he explained how to do it step by step.

"Abigail." I turned to face my father who was waving me over to him and my uncles. I ran to him, smiling as Uncle Anderson complimented my pigtails saying he recognized his sons work. "Abi, angel, I want to give you something."

"My New Year's present?" I asked in an excited whisper. None of our cousins received such gifts since there were too many of them for my aunt and uncles to afford it. My Pa nodded, taking a knee in front of me, one arm around my waist. Reaching into his back pocket he pulled out a long gold chain of a necklace, a thick locket hanging from the end of it.

"This was your mother's" he told me lowly, catching my eye so he knew I understood. This was important. "She never took it off until she gave it to me a second before she died. She wanted you to have it."

"It's pretty," I observed, awe struck. There had never been anything I had known of that was left from my mother. My Pa lifted the necklace so that I may grab hold of the locket in my small hands. I popped it open and squinted. "Papa, it is empty."

"I know," he chuckled. Glancing up at his brothers quickly, he pulled me closer. "One day when you get married-" my face scrunched "-you can put your husband's picture on one side, and your baby's picture on the other."

"I'm gonna have a baby?" I questioned wide eyed. How did he know such things?

Again he chuckled before dropping a kiss to my brow, much like William had done between my braids. Taking the necklace from me, he motioned me to turn around so that he may secure it round my neck. "I do hope so, darlin'. Now run along and play, it's almost time for you to head on inside." Ellison and I were not yet old enough to stay up until morning. Hugging my father around the neck, I made a beeline towards Ellison who was still watching Will braid closely.

"Elli, look what Papa gave me!" I said excitedly, flashing him the necklace. His pale eyes grew wide in awe. "He said it belonged to our mama."

"It's real pretty," he mimicked, scratching his chest absentmindedly. A frown creased his brow suddenly and I wondered what troubled him. I knew he was not jealous of the necklace, for jealously was not in my brother's nature. "Abi?"

"Yes?"

"How come you never call me Cotton-Top," he asked innocently, "Like everyone else?"

My own brow furrowed now. "That ain't your name, Ellison is."

"I know, but I like bein' called Cotton." He tilted his head to the side, white hair and pasty skin catching the lantern light in the darkness now. I shifted, hand clutching my new locket as I contemplated this. I always liked my brother's name. Ellison meant 'God is Salvation' and I thought that rang true with my twin. God had saved him from dying in our mother's belly and blessed him with a father that loved him despite his challenges. There was nothing wrong with his name.

But he preferred being called Cotton-Top.

I frowned. "You really want me to call you that?" I questioned warily. His face lit up and I knew the battle was lost. He nodded quickly. "Fine – but I'll start tomorrow, in the New Year."

"Thanks, Abi!" he beamed, collecting me into a bone crushing hug that came with a sloppy kiss. "You sure is a good sister." With that he dropped me and went to run over to talk to Rob. No doubt to share the news; the last person on earth to call him Ellison was no more. I huffed, wiping my mouth as I turned to look at Will who was wearing an oddly smug smile.

"Was that your idea?" I questioned, moving to sit beside him and watch as he finished Nancy's braids. "For him to ask me to call him Cotton-Top?"

"Maybe it was," he shrugged, frowning exaggeratedly as he patted his sister's shoulders to signal his finish. He turned to me as she ran off. "Maybe he just prefers the nickname his family gave him to the name his mama gave him."

I did not know if I should bristle or smile at this. He had near spoken poor of my mother but he had called Elli family. I decided I would not give him the satisfaction of a reaction as I settled more comfortably into my seat beside him.

"It is a silly name."

"So are most."

"What does your name mean?"

"Protector I think."

I nodded at this, thinking back to the Election Day three years ago when he had stood up for Elli and I. Many similar occasions had arrived since, what with the McCoy boys picking up with calling Elli 'Mush-Head', but Will was always there to protect us. "I think it suits you," I said at last, hugging my knees. "Don't change it." He looked sideways at me, leaning back on his elbows on the top step of the porch. His hat sat low on his brow. With a chuckle he nudged his knee against mine. I frowned.

"Don't worry none, cousin," he laughed. "I won't."


	3. The Pig

West Virginia, 1878

_Bang_!

My twin was thrown back by the kick of our uncle's rifle and I winced as he fell to the ground with a pained laugh. Uncle Floyd chuckled; hauling him back to his feet and wiping him off before kneeling down to help him take aim again. They had been at this for hours, Ellison never growing tired of the way the gun's force through his small body to the ground. I could barely stand to watch.

"Cotton, ain't you tired a this yet?" I called from my spot on my uncles back porch. We were staying with him for the day while our Pa and his wife drove her brother back to his home on the far side of Kentucky. The three adults had left here just around four hours ago after Bill Staton had toured around the ranch with Floyd.

"Nah!" Elli called back, laughing as our uncle positioned him to shoot the tree three yards off once more. Looking back up on the porch I noticed Floyd's young wife, Jenny, smiling good naturedly down at me. She was near round seventeen years old and very nice. I liked her.

"Why don't you come help me with the cookin', Abigail," she offered, nodding her head towards the two males, "They're gon' be at it for a while yet." I nodded my agreement, abandoning my seat on the porch and trudging into the house.

My aunt and uncles cabin was not much bigger than ours and Jenny kept it nice and tidy. I had often sat and watched her sweep the entire place in just under ten minutes while simultaneously cooking a stew that could feed up to five. Jenny was a good wife. Pretty too.

"What should we make the boys for lunch?" she questioned kindly, motioning me to take a seat at the table which I did. Tilting my head this way and that, I thought over the question. Recalling her stew made my stomach grumble and I told her as much. "Stew it is."

I was quick to help her gather everything she needed as she set the water to boiling. Since they had just slaughtered their last pig three days prior, there was plenty of pork to be thrown in. Potatoes as well. She helped me to roll up my sleeves before showing me how to properly skin and slice a potato.

"Gotta know these things if you're ever gon' be a wife," she chuckled a few minutes later, blowing a wayward strand of red hair out of her face. I glanced at her curiously, smaller hands not skinning as fast as hers.

"You think I'll marry?" I asked, not knowing if I believed it myself. Not many boys I knew of wanted to marry an illegitimate child.

"Why sure," she laughed, "Don't you?" I told her of my theory concerning my mother and she scoffed. "Well, then just keep it close to home. That'll solve that problem."

"What do you mean?" I questioned, handing her over the potato I had skinned. She made quick work of chopping it into small chunks. Her hands moved so swiftly I barely caught each motion.

"Well you've got loads a cousins," she explained, starting to slide the chopped roots into the now boiling water. "You can always marry one of them."

"You mean like Johnse?" I asked in shock, rolling my sleeves down now since my work appeared to be done. The thought of forever tying myself to my ridiculous cousin made me want to swear off the whole constitution of marriage all together. The vain boy would drive me absolutely mad. Besides that, last time I had checked, he still could not stop himself from staring whenever Roseanna McCoy was in the vicinity.

"Lord, no," she laughed, "I don't think Johnse is the marryin' type, darlin'. No, I was thinkin' more along the lines a William." For reasons unknown, my cheeks began to feel strangely hot at that suggestion and Jenny shot me an amused smirk. "Have a thing for your cousin do you?"

"No," I said honestly, feeling my cheeks in confusion. They had never felt quite like this and obviously they_ looked_ different if Jenny was noticing. It felt similar as to when my face flushed when I was angry. "It was just a queer thing to say."

"Why queer?" she chuckled, sparing me a brief glance before pulling forward the cut of pork she had readied. I was not to help with this since it was much more difficult. Still, I watched in interest.

"Because…I am not of marryin' age yet." Neither was William. I had no doubt that she knew this as sure as she knew her own name. She was unfazed.

"No, but you will be soon enough," she affirmed, grunting as she sliced through the tough meat. "I was engaged to your uncle by the time I was fifteen. You are not so far from that age yourself."

"I am four and a half years from it. And William is my cousin."

"Barely any time at all," she insisted, addressing the first problem, "and why should that matter?" she questioned, addressing the other. She leaned against her counter top now, hair once again in her face. "Your uncle's cousin Ephraim married a _McCoy_," she whispered as if it were some great, disgusting secret before scoffing again. "It's not gonna make a lick a difference if you marry your cousin."

"But what if I do not want to marry my cousin?" I parried, cheeks still feeling hot for no apparent reason. She shrugged, not pressing any further as there was a sudden 'whoop!' from outside the cabin.

"What are they doin now?" she grumbled, undoing her apron to quickly toss it on the table as she hurried to the backdoor. I followed close behind, hoping nothing had happened to Ellison in my short absence. Stepping back out onto the porch we were greeted by the sight of my Uncle Floyd motioning Ellison forward. Ellison, who had a rather large pig cradled in his arms. "Floyd, where'd that pig come from?"

"I found it, Aunt Jenny," Ellison beamed, clearly proud of himself as he handed it to Floyd whose eyes were wide with glee. As the pig's position changed, I noticed something and stepped down off the porch. Side stepping my brother's awaiting arms, I studied the swine in my uncle's arms.

"This hog's notched," I declared, pointing out the obvious shape cut into its right ear. My uncle looked at it as well, frowning deeply at the discovery. Ellison tilted his head curiously at me. "That means it belongs to somebody."

"Probably wandered off a farm at feedin' time," Jenny agreed, hands on hips as she shot a look at her husband. He looked contemplative. "You'd better take it back to wherever you found it."

"Aw come on, Jen," my uncle objected as Ellison made a sound of protest. He hand the pig to me and I passed it to Elli who smiled at the beast. "It was all the way onto our land, it's practically ours."

"I will not keep a stolen pig, Floyd," Jenny hissed, pretty face carved into a scowl. I had never seen her pretty features obscured in such a way. "Take it back right now."

My uncle refused again and sensing a fight about to start I urged Elli to put the pig down. Taking his hand, I walked him around the side of the house, Jenny and Floyd's shouts following us as we went.

"Abi, is you mad at me?" Elli questioned. I gave him a queer look. He was always asking me that even though my answer had never changed.

"For what, Cotton?"

"Cause I done somethin' wrong." We reached the front of the house.

"You ain't done nothin' wrong, Cotton," I assured him, settling us down on the front porch. "You just found the pig. _Keepin' it_ would be wrong." He nodded his understanding.

"Is Uncle Floyd gon' keep it?" he whispered worriedly, pink rimmed eyes glancing around. I shrugged.

"I do not know." The sound of a horses whinny drew our attention up the road. A cart pulled by a brown mare with two occupants was approaching. "Papa's back." Elli immediately jumped up and raced to greet him. I hung back on the porch, reaching up to stroke my locket, also wondering if our uncle would keep the pig.

I stood as my Pa, Ms. Staton, and Elli all drew up to the porch, letting my father greet me with a kiss on the cheek. "Did Cotton tell you about that pig?" I asked, having heard my brother chatting animatedly as they approached. My father nodded, smile tight as he stood. Floyd had just come from around the corner of the house looking worn but smug.

"Hey, Ellison," he greeted, shaking hands with my father briefly. Again it was strange to think of this young man as being the uncle to my Pa and uncles. "They were fine all day."

"I'd hope so," my father laughed, glancing down at my twin and I. We were ready to go. "Heard you had a bit a good fortune just a few minutes ago."

"That's right," Floyd nodded, grinning. "Your boy found a nice fat hog right here on my land."

"How strange," Ms. Staton observed, not moving from her spot on the cart. "Was it marked?"

"It will be here in a moment," he laughed, gesturing over his shoulder. At that moment Jenny came out to greet my Pa and his wife. I did a double take as I noticed the stain of red marring her cheek. She looked weary and sad, not how she usually looked. I glanced between her and my uncle Floyd.

"Good luck with the pig," my Pa said, not sounding as if he meant it. He picked Ellison up, placing him on his hip with a tired sigh. We were getting too big for such things. "We should be off."

"Ah, please stay for dinner," Floyd insisted, placing a hand around Jenny's waist. I wondered how she trained herself not to flinch away. "Jenny just put on some stew."

"That'd be fine, but we gotta get back," my Pa insisted, motioning me to go get in the cart. I have to stop by Anderson's place on the way anyhow."

"That so?" Floyd questioned, no longer seeming interested as he glanced over his shoulder towards the back of the house. "His boy Johnse's turnin' fourteen tomorrow ain't he?"

"Nah, it's Will that's turnin' fourteen," my father corrected him. Floyd gave a low whistle.

"How time flies," he chuckled, nudging Jenny good naturedly. She did not respond. The red splotch on her cheek looked to be darkening into a bruise already. "I was probably that age when I knew my first wife."

"I remember Aunt Anne," Ellison said thoughtlessly, rubbing the back of his head as he looked up at the tree tops. Jenny bristled visibly before stepping forward to kiss my father's cheek.

"Safe journey," she wished, patting Ellison's back in farewell. He graced her with a sweet smile. Stepping around them to me, she helped me into the cart, smiling as she brushed my hair back from my face. "You think about what I said now," she whispered, tapping her finger on the edge of my nose.

"I do not want to marry William," I said stubbornly, fisting my hands in my dress front. I was not sure if I was just being difficult, or if I honestly was unsettled with the idea of marrying my cousin. It did not matter, because just for a second, the smile returned to her eyes.

"Johnse will do just as well, little-one," she said in a tone that I knew was meant to be teasing. She did not think Johnse would make a good husband to me or anyone else. With a quick kiss on my cheek and a wave to Sarah, she turned her back on us and retreated into her home. Most likely to check on the stew she would now have to eat with only her husband. Jenny was a good wife.

"Well we'd best be off," Pa said, already returned to his seat atop the cart, Ellison squeezed in between him and Ms. Staton. "Enjoy that pig now," he called to his uncle, waving as he urged Trixie into movement. We all jerked a bit.

"Don't you worry," Uncle Floyd laughed, hand raised over head. We were pulling away now. "I will."

I watched my uncle on his porch get smaller and smaller until we turned a corner and I could see him no more. The mark on Jenny's pale cheek would bother me for some time after that day, but at that moment I had to let it go. Turning around in my seat, I rose to my knees and leaned over my father's shoulder simply to rest my chin.

"Why are we going to Uncle Anse's?" Elli questioned, leaning sleepily on our father's arm. I had no doubt the number of times he had been thrown to the ground by the rifle's kick was beginning to wear on his tiny body.

"It is your cousin Will's birthday tomorrow," Pa informed, squinting up at the sky. It was a clear day. "We gotta deliver his gift." I was not sure how my Pa let alone Will's own parents managed to keep track of all their birthdays. I, for one, did not know the day and month my cousin Johnse had been born by heart.

"What'd ya get 'im?"

"See for yourself," he said, motioning over his shoulder without taking his eyes off the path, "It's under that blanket there." I turned, noticing for the first time, the blanket that looked to be thrown randomly in the back of our cart. Pulling myself over to it on my knees, I yanked it back and blinked at the rifle I found.

"What is it, Abi?" Elli asked curiously, too tired to pull himself into the back of the cart to see for himself. I picked up the rifle in my hand warily, never having touched one before. It was heavy. I used both hands. "Wow! Daddy, when can I have _my_ first rifle?"

"On _your _fourteenth birthday," my father promised as we made another turn onto the path that would lead straight down to my Uncle Anderson's ranch. I adjusted the gun in my arms, holding it as I had seen Johnse and our fathers do. My arms shook under the weight of it and I lowered the barrel to the cart floor, finger nowhere near the trigger. I knew how guns worked, despite never having handled one, and I did not want to shoot a hole in our only cart. Or worse, myself.

"Will Abi get one too?" my twin inquired childishly. Nevermind the fact that Victoria had not gotten a gun on her fourteenth birthday, or any girl he had ever known; Ellison wanted to know if his twin sister would receive a gun as well. Sarah bristled, not even sparing us each a glance, so determined was she to stare a hole into the air before her.

"Certainly not-"

"If she wants one," my Pa answered with a shrug, not seeming at all concerned with the glare his wife sent his way after he'd cut her off mid-sentence. Shocked, I set Will's gift down and pulled the blanket back over it. I crawled back to the front of the cart, hovering over my father's shoulder as my uncles cabin came into view.

"Truly, Papa?" I asked, eyes wide with wonder. "Can I truly get a rifle like Will and Johnse when_ I_ turn fourteen?" It was not customary for girl to be gifted guns, and I did not know if my father was so outlandish as to do such a thing.

"Angel," he chuckled, drawing Trixie to a slow halt in front of the cabin. Nancy waved from the porch step and ran inside to call on her parents. "You can have anythin' you want in this world."

"A gun," I answered immediately, not knowing where the sudden fascination had come from. Maybe just that second of holding William's rifle had done it for me. Lord only knows. Sarah looked fit to be tide. "I want a gun like the boys get."

"Then you will have one." The front porch opened and William came running out, dark eyes alight. I knew my aunt and uncle had probably sent him out, knowing we were here to deliver his birthday gift. "Hey there, Will."

"Hey, Uncle Ellison," he greeted, shifting from foot to foot anxiously. He nodded at each of us in turn, shooting a smile at me before turning back to my father. His excitement was tangible as he glanced at my father's hands which were empty but for the horse reins. "So…what can I do for you?"

"Actually," my Pa sighed, a teasing smile in his eyes. "I had something I needed to drop off to your Pa. Could you give it to him for me?" Will wilted like a flower in winter. It would have been comical if he did not look so disappointed.

"Oh," he mumbled, "Sure I'll give to 'im." I tilted my head in disbelief. My cousin must be very gullible if he believed that excuse so easily. We always delivered his birthday gift the day before his birthday. Him and all his siblings. "Where's it?"

"Oh, it's in the back there," Pa gestured, coughing over what must have been a laugh. Elli looked fit to burst and I did not know how this did not set off William's curiosity once more. Perhaps because Ellison always looked excited? "Abigail would you give it him?"

Crawling on my knees, I motioned Will into the back of the cart with me. He sighed as if this was tedious work and then pulled himself up beside me. He rested back on his heels, his tall frame folding in on itself as he crawled to me. I smiled at him and motioned him closer. With an exaggerated huff he made an annoyed show of pulling right up next to me before the blanket. I smirked at him before yanking the blanket back.

"Happy birthday!"

Any sort of somber attitude had been replaced by one of shock as he took in the shiny new rifle at our knees. "This is for me?" he asked in awe, not even daring to touch it as he turn to look at me, dark eyes wide. I blinked, taking pause for some reason.

"Your father and I split the price for it and I picked it up yesterday," Pa said over his shoulder with a laugh pulling me from my mushed-head state of being. Turning to the front of the cart, I saw that my aunt and uncle along with Johnse had all come out into the front of the house to greet us as well as see the gun.

"Johnse come see it!" Will exclaimed, finally picking up his gift and hoisting it into his arms with an ease I envied. He moved as if he was born to carry the thing. His older brother came around to the side of the cart, nodding appreciatively at the rifle. It was a good looking gun apparently. "Lord, I can't wait to shoot this!"

"Will here's a sharp shooter," Johnse informed me. I could not tell if he was being serious or not but I did not have time to ask as Will suddenly set the gun down and pulled me into a smothering hug.

"Thank you!" he breathed into my hair, his larger body enveloping me completely. I did my best to return the hug, but I fear I merely pat his back.

"It's nothin'," I gasped as he pulled away. He did not appear to have heard me as he picked up the gun again, this time standing in the back of the cart with it. "Will?" He paid me no heed as he checked the barrel. The gun was loaded. Cocking it back against his shoulder, he leveled it with his right eye, seeming to take aim at something Johnse, Elli and myself could not see. We all waited.

Suddenly, he turned sharply to his right and fired. I jumped in shock as did Ellison. Sarah yelped, having not known William was preparing to fire. Far off into the tree line, I saw something dark fall to the ground and realized William had shot down a bird at a nearly unbelievable distance. He lowered the gun, smiling in satisfaction as I stared on, awed.

"Wow!" Ellison cried, exhaustion forgotten as he tripped into the back of the cart. "Can you teach me how to shoot like that, Will?" Will laughed, shooting me a smirk under his lashes as he nodded at my twin. I realized I had been sitting with my mouth hanging open and quickly shut it.

"When you get a rifle of your own," Will confirmed, "Sure will, Cotton-Top." Ellison all but squealed in excitement seemingly forgetting that there was still nearly four years between now and the time when he would receive his first rifle.

"But you gotta teach Abi too," he said suddenly causing both Will and Johnse to tilt their heads in confusion, Johnse having not abandoned his spot next to the cart, looking up at us. "She's gettin' a gun when we turn fourteen too." Johnse of course fell into immediate disbelieving laughter while Will raised a brow at me. I felt my cheeks do that thing where they felt oddly warm again and nodded.

"I want a gun," I mumbled under my breath, eyes lowered to the carriage floor. William shifted, adjusting his hold on his new rifle and from the corner of my eye I saw him nod.

"Then I will teach you to shoot," he said, sounding more sincere than he had with Ellison.

"Truly? You mean it?" I asked, breathless. Lowering the rifle from where he had been inspecting the barrel, Will took to his knee besides me, dark eyes lining with my pale ones. My cheeks felt aflame. What _was_ that?

"I swear it," he promised, voice even deeper than it had been before. Letting out a huff of breath, I beamed before hugging him tightly around the neck. He choked around his laughter.

"I love you, William," I smiled into his shoulder. He patted my back, not hugging me back fully since he still held the rifle in his left hand.

"I know, I know, I'm your favorite cousin," he teased, pulling away. I giggled, pushing my hair back away from my face as he straightened again. "Now don't you go shootin' with anyone but me, you hear?"

"I swear it," I mimicked, now feeling as excited as Elli though I knew I would have a long time to wait before this came to pass. Still, I was excited for the day when I might shoot as well as Will. With one final nod to me, he bound from the back of the carriage, gun in hand, to the leafy ground besides Johnse. His brother took a closer look at the gun, nodding again before stepping away. Will followed, smiling back at me.

"Thanks again, Uncle Ellison," he called as our carriage jerk into movement. Elli stumbled and reached for my shoulders as we pulled away. When the cart turned, we hung out the back and waved to our cousins. "Don't forget!" Will called, "Only shoot with me!"

"I promise!" I called back, continuing to wave to him until we turned a corner and I could see him no more.


	4. It's Gone Milky

West Virginia, 1880  
May

"So McCoy has called Uncle Floyd into court over a _pig_?" I questioned Victoria incredulously. She nodded gravely, stepping lightly up the hill accompanied by her husband Plyant Mahon. He was a thin man with a graying mustache and not much hair on his head. Next to Victoria, who had only become prettier with age, he was downright grotesque. The two had been married just under a year now and went everywhere together. It was vexing, but I was aware it was not my place to say so. I sighed, mind back on this new issue with the McCoys. I knew the pig being fought over was most likely the McCoys, having been there the day it was found and knowing for certain it was not my uncle's, but I had no intention of saying so. I would be disowned.

"It seems silly to go to court over such a small matter," Plyant stated, helping Victoria to steer clear of an obviously treacherous boulder as we continued along. "It's likely to make McCoy the village idiot."

"I doubt if the matter is actually the pig, Mr. Mahon," I chuckled, amazed at the man's dimness. He was getting in on in years though I supposed. "But you are right, I think this could have been settled at home." There was a tug on my hand. I looked over to Ellison to see he had squatted to look at a rabbit that was not far from us, just off the path we were walking. "Leave it be, Cotton," I advised, pulling on his hand. The rabbit ran off and Cotton returned to my side, smiling innocently at me. I smiled back

At thirteen years old, my twin had shot up some, but was still a great deal shorter than our cousins. His voice cracked when he smoke now and he'd come to me one night complaining of wetting his bed 'but not with pee'. These were all things that were normal for growing boys, but it was odd to see it in Ellison since he was still so innocent, that it was hard to believe that he would one day soon be considered a man. It almost hurt my heart to see it.

I myself had changed also though, I was not sure if it was as noticeable as my brother. I had grown taller, standing level with Ellison, whom was, strictly speaking, a woman's height. I was more shapely than I had been in childhood. I had begun my flow almost immediately after turning thirteen and ashamedly had to ask Ms. Staton for help when such issues arose now. At this age, she seemed to tolerate me a bit more, and even welcomed me to watch her mend and sew so that I may learn how for myself. It was a weird sort of companionship.

She was not with us today however as we trekked through the broken branches surrounding the spot of land where my Uncle Anderson milled timber. All around, about an acre out, members of the Hatfield clan could be found sawing down tree, stripping them, and having them hauled off to town. Uncle Anderson had invited us today to see Johnse and William who now worked here beside their father on a regular basis. I was noticeably excited, seeing as William had held true to his promise of teaching me to shoot and I was now very close to my fourteenth birthday. I had kept my promise as well, and not touched any other man's gun since the day before Will turned fourteen. He would teach me to shoot and no one else.

"The court date is set for the day after tomorrow," Victoria held on with our former topic of conversation, stopping to make a visual scan of the area. I stood by her.

"Are we expected to attend?"

"Of course!" she scoffed, not noticing that her husband had made to deny this claim. "We have to be there to support the family, even aunt Lavicy says so." Had she asked me, I would have said to her that I believed aunt Lavicy was too busy with eight children to be attending court hearings. But she did not ask, so I did not say.

"Mahon! Mounts!"

Looking further down on the hill, we spotted Johnse waving us over with his rifle. At eighteen now, Johnse was tall, muscular, and more handsome than ever. Many girls chased after him and if rumor served true, he let quite a few of them catch him. My cousin had quite the reputation and whenever I recalled my great aunt Jenny suggesting I marry him, I cringed.

"Johnse!" Cotton yelled, waving wildly before shooting off down the hill, heedless of the many workers and broken limbs blocking his path. I clutched at my locket.

"Cotton, _stop_!" I barked. He halted immediately, turning back to me looking chagrined. I sighed in relief, wiping my fingers across my brow as Mahon made some sort of comment under his breath. I did not hear it, nor my cousin's reply as we made our way down the hill, catching up to Cotton whose hand I immediately grabbed in mine. "Do not run off like that."

"Sorry, Abi," he apologized in a whisper, head lowered and fingers tugging at his ear gently, a nervous habit he had picked up as of late. I accepted his apology, bringing him along as reached the spot where Johnse stood, rifle slung over shoulder, a few yards away from where his father stood, obviously arguing with a man in a suit.

"Who is that man?" Victoria asked, not hiding the lingering gaze that swept over Johnse who looked to bask in the attention. I raised my brow at them both. Strange creatures, the pair of them.

"A lawyer a the McCoy's," he said nonchalantly, shrugging beneath the weight of his rifle. "Tryin' to say that this land belongs to them." Cotton released my hand to squat near a nearby stump. I allowed it.

"Does it?" I asked, squinting as my uncle took a threatening step towards the man. He retreated and went on his way, clearly not receiving what he had come for. Johnse laughed.

"Not at all," he scoffed, stretching his back until there was a crack. His skin had grown dark out in this sun. "Just those nasty McCoy's tryin' to cheat us again. They think everythin' on God's green earth belongs to them."

"Timber _and_ pigs." Plyant laughed at his own joke and we all turned to him, noses scrunched. Under the starch of our gazes, he cleared his throat and smoothed a hand through his hair casually. I did not like this man.

As Uncle Anderson began to make his way up to us, I glanced at the stump Cotton had been crouching by. He was not there. Eyes wide, I scanned the immediate area for him, but did not see any sign of his snowy white head. Johnse called something down to his father but I did not hear it as I began backtracking up the hill from the way we had come. He could not have gone far. I passed working men on my left and right, quickly glancing around their bodies to see if I could spot the smaller one of my brother. No luck.

"Cotton?" I called out worriedly, reaching the top of the hill. I did another scan of the area below me, seeing all the people I had just passed. I saw my kin talking at the base of the hill, Victoria gesturing wildly up to me while the others glanced between us. The workers that had paused in what they were doing to shoot me curious looks. I even saw the McCoy lawyer approaching his horse. But I did not see my twin. "Cotton!"

"Abi!" I spun around, hurrying further up the hill at my brother's call. "Abi, come quick!" I picked up my skirts, running in a fashion that Sarah would fume at, but not caring as I rushed to Cotton's aid. Clearing the second hill in a sweat, I saw him crouched on the ground, smiling wildly at me, a small brown rabbit clutched in his hands. He was fine.

I let out a breath so great it could have blown a house down. Hand over heart, I slowed my pace to a tired walk as I approached him. So preoccupied was he with the struggling bunny that he did not notice my stony gaze. "Cotton," I said acidly just a few feet in front of him now, "I have told you not to run off like that a million-"

"ABIGAIL, MOVE!" I started at this hollered order, spinning around in confusion, not knowing where it had come from.

"William?"

Suddenly I heard Victoria's girlish scream and saw her standing where I had just been, pointing behind me like a mad woman. Turning, I gave a girlish gasp as I saw the large tree falling in my direction. Without thinking, I rushed forward to grab Cotton, who was beginning to look frightened what with all these loud noises, knowing there was no way I could get to him _and_ escape the tree. As my hands fisted in his shirt, I was suddenly shoved roughly to the side, crying out as I dragged Cotton with me. We rolled to the side, just missing being impaled by the trees thicker branches as it crashed to the ground with a noise like thunder. Everything shook. Still, some of the kindling splintered off and rained down on us. Cotton was screaming. I pulled my body over his.

"ABIGAIL! COTTON! WILLIAM!" I heard Victoria scream. She was obviously calling to us. My mind reeled when I heard her say William. Suddenly she was talking to someone else. "Do not just stand there, you fool! Fetch my uncle, quick! ABIGAIL!"

"I am here," I said breathlessly, knowing there was no way she had heard me. Opening my eyes, I was met by the brilliant shock of Cotton-Top's cotton top. I moved off of him shakily, arms feeling like they had no bones. "Are you alright?" I questioned, voice quivering as I tried to sit up. Cotton nodded, face streaked with tears as he moved to his knees. The rabbit was still in his arms, but was completely motionless. I feared it had suffered a heart attack of some sort, or perhaps bashed its head and died.

"AHH!" The scream that followed my discovery of the dead bunny shook me to my core and set Cotton to crying again. "PAPI!"

"That sounds like William," Cotton mumbled, eyes still leaking salt water as he sat up. The branches around us were all snapped and broken, creating a sort of roof of sharp edges. Leaves still rained down on us yet.

"Will?" I repeated worriedly. I had heard him call out to me before the tree had fallen and Victoria had called out to the three of us once it had settled. Had Will been hurt? "William?"

The crying went on.

Reaching out, I steadied myself on one of the jagged branches and took to my feet. As soon as my head popped up from the wreckage, Victoria spotted me and cried in relief. "Stay there!" she informed, fitfully. "Do not move!" I paid her no heed as I turned in the direction the crying was coming from and began picking my way through the hazardous branches. "Abigail!" William was hurt.

"William?" I called, not knowing if I'd be able to spot him beneath all the wrecked foliage. My heart was hammering in my chest fit to burst.

"I can't see! I can't see!" I heard his pitiful wail and dropped to my hands and knees. Continuing at a crawl through the branches, I heard men approaching from somewhere behind me. I hoped they would get Cotton out without incident. I pushed aside a particularly nasty looking branched and was met with the bloody sight of my cousin. "Abigail!"

"William!" I cried, rushing forward on my knees, dirt smearing my dress. I did not care. Will had a hand pressed over his left eye, and blood was gushing from between his fingers. I cringed, putting my own hand up to cover his. "You are hurt!"

"I can't see, Abi," he told me painfully, his one good eye looking about frantically, never focusing on me for more than a moment. He was shaking all over, air rushing from his lips in gusts. I grabbed his other hand in mine. "I'm dyin'!"

"No!" I protested, just as the sound of undergrowth being torn away sounded behind me. William jumped, seizing my shoulder since he could not see who or what was coming. It was only workers and I told him as such as they prepared to move him. "I'm here William," I comforted as they lifted him from the ground gently. "I'm here and your Pa's comin' right now." He looked so scared, it made my eyes water.

They moved him to the base of another tree that had been cut and made to head back to fetch my uncle. When I asked after my brother, one man informed me that Victoria had taken him out of harm's way. I breathed easier, reclaiming my spot at William's side. More men surrounded us, but they kept their disance as I leaned over my cousin.

"I can't see, I can't see," he repeated over and over, blood beginning to spill down his neck. He lay now with his hands away from his face, palms up to the heavens. Looking at his left eyes, I saw nothing but a bloody pool surrounding his dark lashes. I cried, shushing him gently, and putting my hand to his hair. He couldn't see.

"William!" I turned at the sound of my Uncle Anderson's voice. He came skidding to a halt on his knees beside his son, Johnse right behind him, pale with fright. Will jumped and struggled to protect his eye as his father touched him, having not been able to see him approach. "I know it hurts bad, son."

"Daddy, Johnse, I can't see!" he ground out, chest heaving as he seemed to get worked up again. My uncle put his hand over the one Will already had on his eyes and pressed down on it, all the while trying to comfort my hysterical cousin.

"We're gonna get you to a doctor straight away," my uncle insisted, bringing his face down close to Will's so that his good eye may see him. "Listen, William, listen…you're not gonna die…" William's good eye circled his head, looking glassy as he nodded. "But I won't lie to you…this is a serious wound."

Any joy I may have felt at hearing William would survive was lost to me as the sixteen year old boy began to cry in earnest. My heart cringed for him and I wanted to cry too. He flung his arms around his father's neck like a child and I watched in shock as my uncle picked him up like one and carried him away. Johnse followed, all act of showing off for Victoria forgotten at his little brother's injury. I watched until they disappeared down the far side of the hill, William's cries no longer reaching my ears. They were probably going to fetch a doctor.

Looking down at my hands, I saw that one was smeared with William's blood and blinked, wiping it casually on my dress front. If felt as if my mind and body were shutting down as I adjusted my position there on the ground. William, my favorite cousin, may lose his eye and it was our fault. It was _my _fault. I should have been paying closer attention to Cotton.

"Abigail!" when I heard Victoria call to me, it sounded like it could have been the second or third time she had done so. Snapping my head up, I saw her standing over me, Cotton in toe, giving my bloodied dress an unhappy frown. "Come on now, we have to go into town with them to find a doctor."

"William may go blind," I stated numbly, not moving from my spot besides where William had lain. Victoria nodded. She informed me that it was possible. "H-He may never be able to shoot again." Also possible. She looked concerned now as she reached down and grabbed my unsoiled hand, tugging me to my feet like an infant.

"Do not think of that now," she said wispily, not meeting my eye as she dragged us down the hill. Plyant had gone for their house and cart and was waiting for us at the base where our uncle and the lawyer had spoken. "We have to hurry to drop you with them now so that Plyant and I can go tell Aunt Lavicy."

Aunt Lavicy.

William's mother.

She was going to be so upset.

The frantic cart ride into town was silent except for Cotton's incessant questioning which I ignored for Victoria to answer. She shot me a look that was as worried as it was annoyed every time I did not reply to my brother. I kept the hand caked with William's blood clutched into a fist on my lap with the other touching my locket lightly.

William may go blind.

The thought would not leave me as we finally arrived in town. We had followed my uncle's path and crossed the river into Kentucky in order to reach the nearest doctor. We spotted their cart hitched outside of a small walk up building and I immediately was pulled from my dazed state, pointing it out to Plyant. He drew us to a stop and I did not wait for his hand to jump down from my seat, landing heavily on the balls of my feet and nearly tumbling into the dirt.

"Abigail?"

"Stay here, Cotton," I said firmly, briefly glancing to him over my shoulder. I did not want him in the doctor's office in case the man had needed to remove William's eye all together and the scene was bloody. The thought alone gave me pause right outside the door and for a moment I thought I may faint. Shaking my head, I called for Victoria to take Cotton with her to Aunt Lavicy's and leave him there as I entered the office.

It was dark and musty on the inside, an unpleasant metallic smell assaulting my nose as I shut the door behind me. Glancing to the side, I noticed Johnse's rifle leaned against a waiting chair. I heard voices in the backroom and charged toward it without thought. The door leading there had a glass window cut into it, but I did not look through it before pushing my way in. At the sound of it creaking open, everyone in the room turned to me except William who lay motionless atop a long flat table in the center of the room. My heart stopped.

"Is he dead?" I sobbed, moving to go to him but being held back by my uncle who caught me in a hug, face hidden in his chest. "Is he dead, Uncle Anse?"

"No, angel, no," my uncle soothed, patting my heaving back comfortingly. Tears had overcome me now. "He's just sleepin'."

"Did he lose his eye?" I whimpered, having seen the bandage wrapped around the left side of his face as he'd lain there.

"No," informed a heavy set man that was closest to William. My uncle released me from the hug to wrap his arm around my shoulders and pull me further into the room. The man that had spoken had a smearing of blood on his shirt that he did not appear to notice and I realized he must be the doctor. "No, he will keep the eye, but it will be useless to him now, see."

I had reached the other side of the table by the time he finished explaining William's condition. Reaching out to rest his thick hand on my cousin's sleeping brow, he pushed the bandaging aside and used his thumb to pull Will's left lid back away from his eye. I gasped, hands flying up to my mouth as whiteness and nothing else was seen. His eye had gone milky. When Will did not stir at this assault, I again wondered if perhaps he had passed on with the angels, but when his eye was released and bandage replaced, he shifted slightly and I realized the doctor must have used something strong to help him sleep through any pain he may be in.

"When will he wake up?" I asked, trying not to think of the colorless eye that had replaced the one my cousin had. The doctor shrugged, grabbing a towel from the edge of the table to wipe his hands. The towel was stained with blood. I cringed.

"Hard to say, lil' sis," he huffed, turning his back now to handle something out of my eye sight. Looking up at my uncle with a tear stained face, I saw that he was looking grimly at his second son.

"Can I sit with him?" I asked lowly, voice scratchy from tears at this point. My uncle looked about to protest until he looked at my stricken face. With a sigh, he nodded, motioning Johnse to bring over a chair that was placed under the only window in the room. I sat. "Victoria has gone with her husband and Cotton to get your wife," I told him, not taking my eyes off William. I grabbed his hand.

"That'll be fine," my uncle said, reaching out to pull Lord knew what from my hair. I imagined I looked a right mess after what had happened, but I was not so worried about my appearance to stray from my cousin's side to right myself. My uncle kept up with the picking until I guessed my hair was free of any foliage. With a light pat to my shoulder, he asked the doctor and Johnse in the hall to speak.

When the door closed behind them, I let out a breath through my lips and scooted my chair closer to the table. "I'm so sorry, William," I whispered wearily, reaching up to wipe my cheeks quickly. "It's my entire fault you were hurt." I glanced over my shoulder to make sure no one was coming through the window. Standing then, I leaned over my cousin, tears from my face falling to his. I wiped them away gently.

"Please be alright." Bringing my face down near his, I sniffled lightly. "Please." Closing the distance between us, I pressed my lips to his in a short, sweet kiss. The first kiss I had ever lain on a boy. He did not move. I sat again, cheeks feeling warm as they had not felt in some time. I touched my face just as William began to stir and the door opened again.

"He's wakin' up!" Johnse said excitedly hurrying to the opposite side of the table. He took an elbow next to his brother, staring him hard in the face. "Will? Can you hear me?"

"That's a strong sedative he's under," the doctor informed, still standing in the doorway with Will and Johnse's pa. "Bromides. He'll be out for a while yet." Still, William stirred and Johnse and I leaned in close as he began to mumble under his breath.

"What's he sayin'?" Uncle Anderson questioned curiously. I brought my ear right down to Will's lips so that our skin nearly brushed.

"Abigail," he breathed right into my ear. I pulled away, cheeks hot to the touch only to catch Johnse's look. He had somehow heard his brother's breathy plea and was giving me the queerest expression. Touching my hot face, I took to my seat again, not taking Will's hand in mine as I had before.

"He's just mumblin' nonsense," I told my cousin, not meeting anyone's eye as I began picking at the crusted blood on my hand. I would sit there all night until my Pa came and carried my tired body home. He would tell me later that William had been awake and watching over me when he came.


	5. Down the Rabbit Hole

Kentucky, 1880

"Come sit with me?" William asked lowly, tugging on my skirt. The bandage he still wore over his left eye was hidden mostly by his hat, and he kept his head low so others would not stare. I turned to my father questioningly. He nodded taking Cotton's hand from mine own and leading him to the front row of the court house, with Sarah and her brother, who looked to be sauced even at this early hour, staying towards the back. Turning back to William I smiled under the gaze of his one eye.

"Where're your parents?" I asked as he led me to the seats at the very back of the courthouse near the door. Today was the trial between Randolph McCoy and our uncle Floyd over the pig he had allegedly stolen two years back. I knew there was no allegedness about the matter but only I, Cotton, Floyd and his wife, Jenny, were privy to this information. I had sworn Cotton to secrecy however, not willing for him to be dragged into the fray.

William found two seats beside our uncle, Jim Vance, and helped me into one. "They're up there a ways," he said, motioning further up the aisle. To the right side, the McCoy clan sat, while here on the left us was Hatfields. I spotted my aunt and uncle sitting amongst the rest of my kin, father and brother included, my uncle smoking a pipe and talking irritably with his wife.

"Hi, Uncle Jim," I greeted as William took the seat between the big man and myself and removed his hat. He nodded, liquor bottle clutched in his hand as he leaned on William's shoulder. Looking up, I saw Johnse take a knee by the balcony railing, still finishing his biscuit from breakfast as he stared down at someone intently. I turned to see who it might be and spotted Roseanna McCoy on the right side of the courtroom

Since his injury two days ago, William had seemed partial to sticking close to me, always keeping me on the side of his body with the still functioning eye. I had heard Johnse question this behavior to his father just this morning. Uncle Anse believed Will wanted me near since I had been the first one to find him after the tree fell and been the only one present in the room when he awoke.

"He was frightened and your cousin was there," he'd explained as we had hall filed into our carriage to leave for the trial. "He will soon grow out of it."

"How's your eye, Will?" Jim Vance inquired, giving my cousin a sidelong look as he sniffed and shrugged. Everyone had heard about the tragedy that had befallen my cousin, and plenty of folks had come up to him outside the courthouse to express their condolences.

"It's gone milky," William mumbled, turning partially to his uncle, no doubt unable to see him from this position. "Capped over." Jim nodded, looking pityingly at Will. I was glad he could not see it.

"Lemme see it," he said suddenly, reaching out with his left hand towards Will's bandage. Will shook his head slightly, tilting his chin away and leaning towards me. Already, he did not like people to stare at his eye.

"No, Uncle Jim." Jim reached forward any way, swatting away my cousin's protesting hands. "Jim-"

"Let me _see it_," he insisted roughly, pulling back the bandage and causing Will to strain his head back slightly. His milky eye blinked, going wide, and I suspected the sunlight streaming in from the windows hurt it somehow. He elbowed his uncle away, readjusting his bandage with an annoyed huff.

Turning forward, I saw his younger brother, Elliot, was staring at him with wide eyes. Reaching forward, Will smacked the eight year old on the arm and told him to turn back around. When he glanced at me, I looked away, not wanting him to see how that sight of his ghost eye had disturbed me. It was just something I would have to get used to. He huffed again, settling back in his seat, arms crossed over his chest. The trial would be starting soon.

"We're gonna call you Cap," Jim said suddenly, returning to his position leaning against Will's shoulder. Will's brow furrowed under his bandage. "Captain Cap. Like your daddy. Shows you're an important person," Jim explained, shifting his foot a bit. I realized he was making an effort to make William feel better about his injury and blinked in surprise. Jim Vance did not seem the type to console anyone but his dog. "It's a good name, Cap."

"Yeah," Will agreed, sitting a bit straighter in his seat now, "I like it." At this, the door to the judge's quarters opened and my Cousin Victoria's father walked out in his long black robes, white beard sticking out against it like a sore thumb.

"Hi, Uncle Wall!" Cotton called, waving from his spot standing at the front of the Hatfield side of the courtroom. I bristled as a laugh went up along with calls of 'mush-head'. I was glad when my Pa pulled Cotton down into his seat, removing his hat from his confused head. As our uncle greeted the courtroom and began questioning the McCoy's lawyer, I cleared my throat, glancing sideways at Will whose attention I had caught.

"I thought you told me you would not change your name," I accused in a whisper. He huffed a bitter laugh, sitting lower in his seat so that I might hear him better.

"That was when I still had two good eyes," he replied. Pity shook my heart at this by I remained firm.

"I hope you do not expect _me_ to call you Cap." I glanced at him. He smiled. Reaching over into my lap, he took my smaller hand in his and squeezed it. My heart fluttered oddly and I frowned.

"Never," he whispered just as Uncle Wall asked whether or not the pig was in court. I snorted.

"No it ain't," my uncle Floyd answered. He had grown a beard in the last two years and sat now besides Jenny who, as a married woman, had her head covered here in court.

"And why not?"

"Well, it done been ate." His honest statement caused another round of laughter and even I chuckled tilting my head towards Will who had a smile across his face.

"You got any witnesses that saw before you butchered the swine to say it is your notch?"

"I didn't know I needed one," Floyd said nervously, shifting in his seat. I squinted. It must be hard to lie to a face of law. Even if that face was kin. "If you give me a couple hours…I might come up with someone." I scoffed again until Ms. Staton's brother stood up right in front of us.

"I seen it," he declared, swaying drunkenly. My eyes widened, glancing over to the McCoy clan as every one of their men fixed a glare on the man Cotton called Uncle Bill. "The hog in question that is, I seen Floyd notch its ear. And if you need me to, I'll say it on the bible." His words were slurred but they were audible.

"I'd advice you not to," Uncle Wall said looking as amused as he did annoyed, leaned far back in his seat as Bill Staton continued.

"Ain't your Uncle Bill kin to the McCoys?" Will asked, chuckling lowly as the man described a notching there was no way he had witnessed. I turned to him, shocked since not many people knew that.

"Yes, his mother, Nancy, was a McCoy." He whistled lowly, adjusting his belt with his one free hand. I noticed only then that he still held mine in the other. Again my heart fluttered.

"I do not believe they will be warm to him after today," he said lowly, good eye scanning the McCoy side of the courtroom. He had caught someone in a glare and I did not turn round, lest I be likewise caught.

"I trust you will all give Bill Staton's testimony the respect it deserves," Uncle Wall said tiredly as Sarah's brother returned to his seat. Will was in stitches along with Jim. "Members of the jury, who believes the hog belonged to Floyd Hatfield?" unsurprisingly all members on the Hatfield side rose their hands. I would not be surprised if they did not know a lick about the case, only that it was against the McCoys. "Who believes it was Randolph McCoy's?" All McCoy members rose their hand, but one. Everyone stared at him. "Selkirk McCoy…you did not vote one way or the other."

"Well he votes to Uncle Randle," the man next to Selkirk answered for him as the man one seat over reached over to smack him. I smirked as my Uncle informed Paris that Selkirk must speak for himself.

"Well I'm tryin' to do the right thing here," Selkirk informed, hand on chin as he thought. "You see, I am of the McCoy family,but…well, you see the truth is…" We all waited. "Deep down, I do believe that pig was one of Floyd Hatfield's razorbacks." There was pandemonium as the McCoy clan became incensed with Selkirk. "Bill Staton swears on his oath that he saw Floyd cut that notch!"

I did not know how much Bill's oath was worth in this situation, but I admired Selkirk McCoy for trusting in a man's word. William shoot me dead if I ever said so aloud.

"You are a lyin' spawn of hell!" I flinched back into William's arm as Randolph McCoy stood in anger. Will adjusted his hold on my hands so that our fingers were laced together. His father cut in as Randolph let on another string of curses.

"Oh Randolph just leave Selkirk out of this," he insisted in exasperation. "You're gon' give yourself apoplexy and all this to do over a pig."

"This is about honor," McCoy insisted, sounding crazed as he approached our side of the courtroom. "About lyin' and stealin' and murderin'." I gasped as Uncle Wall slammed his cane on his podium and requested Randolph to stand down. "It's about sin, Devil Anse," he continued louder, referring to my uncle by his army nickname. People had begun to vacate their seat. "What's Christian right and damnation wrong!"

"William?" I said worriedly, as he pulled me to my feet. Everyone was standing now, pushing and shoving at their offenders angrily. Through the fray I saw Cotton's platinum head. "I have to get my brother-"

"This case is dismissed, everyone GET OUT!" Uncle Wall hollered, making a great sweeping motion with his arm. At that moment, Tolbert McCoy lunged forward and caught Bill under his arm to wrestle him to the ground. Sarah screamed.

Wrapping my arms around Will's waist, I tried to see around people to Cotton, but it was no use as everyone moved to circle around the fight. Will drew his gun out and Uncle Anderson ran in front of him, telling him to lower it before he hurt someone. It shouldn't have mattered since near everyone had drawn a gun at this point. Only one went off, thank the Lord.

I shrieked along with a number of other women as the fire rang out, Will throwing himself over me and covering my head as everyone ducked down in confusion. I hoped my father had pulled Cotton down.

"I will gut shoot the next person that dares to disrespect my court," Victoria's Pa hissed, lowering the gun he had just fired into the ceiling. We all straightened, Will still keeping a protective arm over my head. "Hatfield _or_ McCoy."

"I suppose this is what I should have expected from a Hatfield court," Randolph McCoy spat, stepping away from our family. Uncle Wall threatened to hold him in contempt if he continued, and he made to leave the courtroom, dropping insults to my Uncle Anderson as he went. "Blood touches blood. "

After that, everyone began to file out and I breathed easier, holding back in hopes of catching my father and Cotton in the crowd. William looked down at me with his one good eye, frowning as he replaced his gun in his belt. I was not even sure when he had begun carrying that revolver. I shivered.

"Are you alright?" he questioned in concern, brushing the back of his hand across my cheek. I flinched away but nodded all the same. Turning from me, he took my hand once more and began leading me outside. I followed compliantly, deciding I would seek my Pa and twin outside of the stifling courtroom. Most Hatfields were making hasty retreats, already in their wagons and heading back towards West Virginia territory. We strayed behind.

"There you are," my Pa greeted, Cotton in toe as he found us outside in the street. They were accompanied by our uncles Anderson and Wall and we grouped together to head to some disserted porch. "Interestin' trial wasn't it," my father teased, wiggling a finger in my face to make me smile.

"I don't like that Randolph McCoy," Cotton stated, hat back on his head as he skipped along. He pulled my hand from William's and my cousin and I shared a look. "He's awful mean."

"Yes he is, son," my Pa agreed as we reached a porch not far from the courthouse. There was a checkers board left out and he began to set it up for a game. Cotton took the opposite seat, releasing my hand, face alight.

"Daddy, when are you we goin' back to West Virginia?" I asked, squinting up at the sky. It was a bright day but the sky was still overcast. My uncle Anderson took to leaning on the post beside me, sparing me a loving smile as I questioned after our time of departure.

"It'll be a while yet, angel," he said, making his first move of the game as Cotton watched on. "If you want to return though, I recon one of your cousins would not be opposed to ridin' with you." I perked up at this, turning to see if Johnse was anywhere in sight. He was not. I caught Will's eye and gave him a pleading look. With a sigh, he abandoned his spot leaning behind Uncle Wall and stepped to me.

"I will take her home, Uncle Ellison," he informed, looking to his pa for agreement. Uncle Anse nodded, intent on smoking his pipe. With a sigh of relief, I bid my family farewell, kissing Cotton on the head before taking Will's arm as he lead me to where the horses were tied. "Why are you in such a rush?"

"I do not like Kentucky," I sniffed truthfully, "And the McCoys outnumber us here."

"Damn the McCoys," he grumbled stubbornly, moving his hat to his head, tilting it low over his eye. "They're nothin' but a bunch a cowards and pig thieves." I considered telling him what exactly I knew of that pig, but decided he would not receive it well. We reached the horses and I waited as he untied his mare, mounting first before lifting me up with only one arm. My cousin was strong.

"I do not understand this fightin' between our families," I admitted as we strolled out into the street, me riding astride behind Will with my arms around his middle. I waved to Cotton as we passed the porch again.

"Uncle Jim killed Hanson McCoy," Will answered matter-of-factly. "Or so Ole Ran'l claims."

"Do you think he did it?" I questioned, leaning around slightly on his right side so I could peer into his good eye. He glanced down at me, frowning as he shrugged.

"I suppose I do," he mumbled, "It would be in Uncle Jim's nature."

"So why was he not hanged for murder and the matter resolved?" I could feel him stiffen under my arms. Everyone knew Will loved Jim best, but I still could not understand letting a war break out to save one, dishonest man. Again he shrugged.

"McCoy had no proof, only theories."

"You say yourself it is in Jim's nature and you believe he done it."

"I would not testify for McCoy," Will hissed, yanking his shoulder bank, I believe intentionally knocking me in the jaw. I sat back in the saddle, frowning powerful hard at his back. Just as I made to call him out on this, Bill Staton appeared out of the corner of my eyes. He'd tumbled out of the local bar and was shouting drunkenly.

"Any McCoy tries to come after me – I'll cut 'em down and nut 'em!" he hollered, pointing around at all witnesses, most of which were McCoys. Two men in particular that were walking away, looked down right murderous as Bill repeated his threat. I shook my head, wondering why his sister was not keeping an eye on him in McCoy territory after what had just happened.

"He's gon' get himself shot," I said, voice catching as we crossed over a dip in the road. Will nodded, having heard the shouting but not able to turn his head far enough around to watch Bill stagger drunkenly back into the bar.

"My Pa'll talk with him," he assured, urging his horse into a light trot as we cleared the crowd of the road. "He don't want our family to keep bein' embarrassed."

"Well maybe if the McCoy's ever stop embarrassin' us," I said thoughtfully, tightening my grip on William as we road away from the town. I thought back to McCoy's words inside the courtroom. "Randolph turned on his own nephew."

"He speaks of honor, but I reckon he has none," Will observed, shrugging his shoulders carelessly. I recalled my comment on Bill getting himself shot. I had not meant it seriously, but now I wondered if maybe we shouldn't walk the drunkard home. I purposed this to Will. "That bastard lives clear across Kentucky," he laughed as we reached the bridge over. "Besides I don't want no trouble meant to befall him befallin' you."

I figured this made perfect sense and did not question him further as we rode on. Will went on to tell me how Johnse had started producing liquor in a drip still out in the woods some place. He'd claimed to be planning on building a cabin for his wife to have babies in. I sniggered at the thought of Johnson Hatfield ever settling for a wife when he had so many girlfriends. William joined in on my light teasing of the young man as we came upon my cabin. He dismounted the horse first, nodding a greeting to Sarah who was sat on the porch. I figured she had taken Cotton's horse and left the cart for him and Pa.

"Johnse ain't as bad as all that," Will laughed, reaching up to grab me round the waist and pull me down. "Mama calls him incorrigible, whatever that means." I shrugged as we approached the house, not knowing for sure myself.

"I think it mean he wants to be treated like a man," I offered, holding open the front door for him to enter before me. He shrugged his agreement, removing his hat as he crossed the threshold. Sarah shot me a scandalized look but I ignored her as I followed him. He was my kin, he could come in my home if he wanted to.

"Sounds like Johnse," William agreed, turning to face me once we were both inside. A silence stretched out between us and I cleared my throat, glancing to the stair case.

"Come up to my room," I suggested, grabbing his hand as I passed him. He followed me up the stairs, not having been anywhere but the ground level of our home before. My room was right across from Pa and Sarah's while Cotton slept in a room down stairs. We had used to share a bedroom, but once my flow started Sarah said it was not appropriate, especially since Cotton would crawl into my bed at night after having bad dreams. He still did that sometimes, but we kept it secret from Sarah. I was sure Pa knew.

When we reached my room, we were greeted by my simple bed, pushed up against the back wall and a scattering of books littering the floor. I picked up the one closest to my foot, _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland._

"Do you know your letters?" I questioned my cousin lightly, not wanting to offend him as I took a seat on my bed. He joined me, blonde hair falling over his eyes as he nodded. He needed a haircut.

"I am literate."

"Good," I beamed, handing him the book and readjusting my position so that I was stretched out across my small bed, head in William's lap. "Read to me." He laughed disbelieving at me before finally caving and pealing open the book. He squinted, having difficulty reading the tiny letters with one, slightly obscured eye. With a huff he removed his bandage and blinked rapidly as light flooded into his milky eye. I watched him interestedly as he refocused on the page and began reading in a smooth even tone.

"_Chapter One: Down the Rabbit Hole_," he began, dropping the hand that was not holding the book into my hair. My eyes drooped. "_Alice was beginnin' to get very tired a sittin' by her sister on the bank, and a havin' nothin' to do: once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was readin', but it had no pictures or conversations in it, `and what is the use of a book,' thought Alice `without pictures or conversation?'"_

Soon his soft drawl lulled me into a dream filled sleep. I dreamt of guns and horses and shouting McCoys coming for my family with hate in their eyes. I was not scared however, because just like all my other dreams of the sort, William came in at just the right moment to save me and Cotton and the rest of our family. The only difference in this dream from the others was his milky eye which shone even brighter in the recesses of my mind. It did not disturb me or give me pause anymore. I had accepted it as just another part of William whom I loved wholly, not partially.

"William," I breathed easily in sleep, imagining that I felt a hand stroking the side of my face. It was such a nice dream.

"NOOO!" The despair filled shriek that woke me a number of hours later also woke Will who had fallen asleep beside me. I had somehow become spread across his chest and as he jumped up, I rolled to the side. Rubbing at my eyes tiredly, I saw him grab his gun from where he had lain it atop my copy of _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland_.

"That sounds like Sarah," I said, still trying to shake the last remnant of sleep from my head. Will took to his feet, tucking his shirt back into his pants as he approached the door. "Are Pa and Cotton alright?"

"Stay here," he told me, sliding out of the room soundlessly. I blinked, turning to look out my bedroom window. From the look of the sky, the sun had just barely gone down and I wondered what could have happened between now and the time that we had arrived in the house.

I groaned, my body sore from sleeping awkwardly. I suspected one of my legs had been trapped between Will's heavier ones, as it hurt to move now. There were voices downstairs that I did not register until I heard feet approaching my door. Will pushed it open wide looking shocked but not grave. That alone told me my Pa and brother were unharmed. But something was still wrong.

"What is it?" I asked, voice scratchy from lack of use. Will rubbed a hand roughly over his milky eye.

"The McCoys shot Bill Staton."

**From this point on, the story isn't going to follow series or historical date accuracy since they don't coincide anyway. **


	6. Spark Up a Fire

Kentucky, 1883  
Election Day

Sarah Staton left not long after that day in 1880. She claimed her heart could no longer take the Hatfield and McCoy feud, especially after her brother's killers were released from prison on the grounds of self-defense. I felt for the woman, I truly did. No female should have to witness her brother's killers saunter free not a day later. I believed they should have swung and been done with it, but life was not always fair and God did not _always _deliver. She had departed the day my Pa came back and said they had walked and we had not seen hide or tail of her for three years. I questioned sometime if she still lived.

My Pa had been upset, understandably, but with Cotton and I about, he was smiling again not three days later. We had buried Sarah's brother proper, with her not around to see the act done. He rested in the Hatfield plot, a gift on his drunken head if there ever was one. Deep down I knew he had brought his murder upon himself, though I would not openly state as such, lest the good Lord choose to strike me down.

"Abigail Ruth Mounts, you're hornswoggling me!" my cousin Rob exclaimed, aiming a gentle kick at my side from where he sat on a whiskey barrel above me. I laughed, swatting his leg away as William warned him not to kick at me. I was kneeling between Will's legs, elbows resting on his thigh, facing his younger brother.

"I am not," I chuckled as I again pointed my finger into William's little black book. "_That_ is not how you spell your name, now try again!" Robert E huffed at me, taking the blank sheeted book back from William. I was trying to teach him his letters since he was not learned like his older brothers. He was easily frustrated though and it was hard getting a sixteen year old boy to focus when there were girls about like they were on a day like today.

"Abi Angel," Johnse called from his spot leaning against his Pa's whiskey barrel. I turned to sit on my rear and look at him around Will's knee. "Your pa and brother our havin' trouble with Tolbert McCoy." Looking over to where the twenty-one year old had lazily gestured across the clearing, I could see my Pa holding Tolbert by the throat, Cotton standing awkwardly by. Brow furrowed, I slid to the ground, prepared to approach.

"Abi, maybe you shouldn't," Will warned, shifting in his place, looking ready to hold me back. My cousin was taller and stronger than ever, his shoulders having grown wide in the last few years. His face was no longer baby smooth at nineteen. Instead, he'd managed to grow a modest mustache on his lip, and it tilted whenever he spoken. I had given him hell when it was first starting out. All in all though, he was handsome and was I not so prone to blushing in his presence I would have told him so. It stunned me how many girls were put off simply by his eye.

"I'll do as I see fit," I told him, no malice in my voice as I sauntered away. Robert E whistled after me and I had to laugh. It did not last long however, as I saw my father push Tolbert forcefully away. Picking up my skirts, which now reached the ground around my feet, I hurried over to my family just as my uncle Anderson stepped up to Cotton.

"You listen to me, boy," he said seriously, aiming a finger at my brother. I wondered what I had missed. "A bastard's got no family that loves 'im, is that you?" Cotton looked contemplative and I reached out to tap his shoulder. He spun on me, eyes wide in surprise until my uncle pulled him back again by his scruff. "_Is that you_?"

Cotton shook his head no.

"Is that your sister?"

Cotton shook his head no.

"Nah-No, everyone loves Abi," he said innocently, shrugging shoulders that seemed too broad for his delicate nature. I smiled at this, rubbing my hand down the back of my brothers pale head. I told him that everyone loved him as well.

"You're my son," Pa smiled behind his own brother, hands on his hips. "Why you think your first name's Ellison?" My brother glowed at this compliment and I rested a hand over my locket affectionately. Looking over my brother's shoulder, my father nodded at me as he told Cotton to get everyone back.

"Okie, dokie, everyone get back now!"

Cotton's advice met my back as I had already begun to make my way back to my cousins' whiskey barrels. As I approached, I passed Johnse who himself was retreating. I waved to him but his senses were fixed on something beyond me. Squinting, I turned and followed him with my eyes but not my feet. Off across the festivities, I saw Roseanna McCoy leaning against a post, making eyes at my cousin as he walked up to her. I frowned.

"Johnse still chasin' after McCoy then?" I question, returning to William's side where he now manned the whiskey barrel. He nodded, appraising me with his one good eye. "Shouldn't she be married by now?"

"Shouldn't you?" Rob laughed from his perch. Will glared up at his younger brother as I took on a stricken look. Reaching up, he yanked Robert E down by his ankle, near thrashing his crown on the spare barrel. I smacked Will's arm, telling him to mind the boy's head lest he knock himself stupid.

What Rob had said was on its way to being true anyhow. At sixteen I should have found a man to be my fiancé by now, but my theories from my younger years had carried over. No man wanted to link himself to a bastard, whatever his definition of one may be. At the risk of sounding vain, I was not an ugly girl. I knew. Victoria had gifted me with a mirror when I turned sixteen. I knew what I looked like. I had not grown much taller than Cotton, with slight bones not unlike my aunt. My hair had grown down to my waist, pale as corn silk and curly as a pigs' tails. My skin was not so milky as Cotton's but it was fare. I had had a few suitors in my teen years now, but my Pa had not approved of any of them. Not the McCoy's lawyer and certainly not my Uncle Jim.

"I'm just sayin'" Rob teased, abandoning his letters to go chase after Cotton. I watched him go, lower lip snug between my teeth as I tisked.

"Don't pay 'im no mind, Abi," he said, spitting tobacco into the dirt at our feet. "Robert E would not know his head from a horse's rear-"

"He was just pokin' fun at me," I defended, shrugging my thin shoulders under my heavy dress. "I will take no offense." His milky eye seemed to study me intensely. I frowned at him. "It's fine, William," I insisted, "Why don't you worry about your brother chasin' after a McCoy."

"My brother can handle himself." William left the whiskey barrel in favor of following me around the Election Day fair. He sauntered beside me, hands in pockets. "It's you I worry about sometime."

"And why is that William '_Cap'_ Hatfield," I teased, coming to a stop and squinting up at him. It was as bright a day as any and a fine day for the celebrations. Will frowned down at me, good eye glancing quickly to the side. The smile slipped from my face now as I followed the glanced. Not far off, the McCoy boys were gathered around their own whiskey barrel talking with our uncle Elias. Just as I looked over, Calvin McCoy looked away.

"Because Calvin McCoy has his eye on you," Will grumbled then, mouth falling into a grim frown as he noticed my cheeks had flushed slightly. I turned away from him. "Are you partial to him?"

"No!" I defended immediately, tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear. I could never be partial to a boy I had never spoken to, though there was no denying Calvin was very handsome, as were most of his brothers. Even Tolbert, ornery though he was, was not hard to look at. Will did not look convinced as I blushed again, seemingly from nothing, and spit into the dirt, closer to my feet than what I believed to be strictly polite. I frowned at him and he had the decency to look chagrined.

"What say you," he huffed lowly, "To roundin' up Cotton and clearin' outta here?" I blinked in surprise, seeing that he was serious.

"The day is not half over-"

"We could find somethin' better to do," he assured, spotting Cotton not far off. "I will collect your brother."

"Well, let me ask my Pa first," I sighed, seeing he would not be swayed as he left my side. Shaking my head, I wondered what had come over him as I picked up my skirts and rushed to my father's side. He was not far from where the people were dancing, speaking lowly with my Uncle Anderson. "Papa, might Cotton and I accomp'ny William?"

"Where's he intend to go?" my uncle questioned around his pipe, looking irate that his son had not asked his permission before deciding to call me away from my Pa. I shifted my feet awkwardly, looking between the two men sheepishly.

"Well…h-he did not rightly say-"

"Oh let 'em go, Anse," my pa said, laughing at my shamefaced state. Looking up to the sky, he aimed a finger at me. "You be at your uncle's place before the sun sets, you hear? We're stayin' the night there tonight."

"Yes, Daddy," I beamed, turning away with not so much as a proper farewell, so great was my excitement. I found my cousin and brother near the center of the clearing, William wrestling his younger brother, Elias, and Cotton having a go at the apple bobbing pool. Seeing Cotton was having fun all alone, I snuck up on Will, grabbing Elias as he was holding him over his head. The little boy laughed hysterically, nearly kicking Will in the back of the head, as I wrestled him gently to the ground. "My Pa agreed. We can leave when you please." I said all this through laughter as I held down Elias' kicking legs. Coming up behind me, Will tickled the boy mercilessly, making twisted faces at him much to his amusement. When the little boy was spent, Will leaned back on his haunches.

"I'll get Cotton," he panted with nod, hopping to his feet nimbly. I chuckled, helping Elias into a sitting position and pulling him into my lap.

"You know," came an airy voice from behind me. I turned. "If I did not know you two from a leaf on a tree, I might say you and Will were married and that boy was your son."

"Oh, Jenny," I chortled shortly, turning away from her to stroke Elias' hair. "But you are silly. You've been tryin' to convince me to marry Will for years." The last sentence came out in a grunt as I took to my feet, Elias in my arms. The young woman smiled at me, brushing her hair away from her face.

"Maybe one day you'll pay me some heed," she said conversationally as Will came forward again, water logged Cotton in toe. I frowned at my cousin's angered expression which was directed at a group of McCoys not far away. He had a protective arm around Cotton and I hurried to their side asking after trouble. He denied there being any.

"Hello, Jenny," he greeted, nodding politely under his hat. She gave him a charming smile as he told her we would be departing, offering to watch after Elias. "Much obliged," he thanked her, taking Elias from me and passing him over to our great uncle's young wife. Jenny bid us farewell and we parted ways, Cotton singing happily as we went to untie the horses.

"Abi, will you ride with me?" he asked as he mounted Trixie, whom was now too old to pull the weight of the carriage. I was ready to agree when Will cut across me, already mounted on his horse and waiting for us to be ready.

"She'll ride with me Cotton-Top," he declared, looking at me for an approval I had no choice but to give. Brow furrowed in confusion, I took his offered hand and swung myself up into the saddle, riding astride behind him just like the day Bill Staton was murdered. "Let's ride, cousin."

With that, he kicked his mount into a hard trot and we left the fair ground. I looked back often to make sure Cotton was keeping up. He was fine whenever I checked, never straying for the path and always whistling a happy little tune. I need not worry for him. Righting myself, I hugged Will tighter around his middle, moving my chin to his shoulder so that he may hear me over the thumping of hooves on dirt.

"Why do we ride so hard?" I questioned, hair bouncing against my back.

"Just wanna get outta this God forsaken place soon as possible," he said, making good on his word as we charged right through the Tug, not even bothering with the bridge. I yelped as the cold water clung to my skirts, making them heavy to the point where I feared I may fall off. "I do not like Kentucky."

"I believe I said that to you once," I alleged shakily, again turning in the saddle to make sure Cotton was not trouble by the river. Trixie carried him right on through, not pausing even when my brother dropped her reins to wipe water from his pale face. I shook my head, turning back around. "I believe I was just a few months shy of my fourteenth birthday."

"You were," William agreed, eyes still on the path as we rode on. "I never did teach you to shoot, did I?"

"No," I replied, frowning deeply. This fact had plagued me for years. "Your injury was new then, and I did not want to push you. My father kept true on his word to give me a rifle on my fourteenth birthday and I've scarcely touched it since."

He was silent for a time.

"Why did you not ask your daddy to teach you to shoot?" he wondered just as we cleared the trees surrounding my Uncle Anse's home. I wished he had told me we were coming here earlier so that I did not have to look such a fool in front of my father earlier on.

"I swore to only shoot with you," I said lowly, a hint of bitterness in my voice as we slowed to a stop before their post. Cotton rode up beside us, pink lips stretched over his teeth as he scratched behind his ear.

"Daddy never lets me ride that fast," he informed proudly, sliding from his saddle and moving to pull me from Will's. We did not feel the need to scold him on forgetting to tie up Trixie, or not waiting for Will himself to dismount. Our old mare was not a wanderer and Will was hardly going to draw on Cotton.

"Now don't you go tellin' him about that," Will warned, stepping off his mare with a skilled ease. "You might get me n' Abi in trouble."

"I won't tell, Cap," my brother promised, not noticing the glare I was shooting our cousin as he began walking backwards towards the house. "I'm gon' see if y'all have any biscuits!" He turned then and tripped up the stairs, disappearing through the front door before I could tell him it was rude to take food without asking. Will laughed lowly and I turned to him, raising one eyebrow as he drew his rifle from his saddle bag. He still carried the same one we had given him on his fourteenth birthday. Also grabbing a box of ammunition, he motioned for me to follow him out towards the back of the house.

"What're we doin' out here?" I asked, hugging myself as we came ten yards shy of the tree line. Will dropped the box of amo at his feet before checking the barrel of the rifle with his good eye.

"I said I'd teach you to shoot," he said with a shrug, cocking the barrel back into place. "And I intend to." My mouth dropped open in shock as he motioned me forward.

"I do not have my gun," I stated the obvious, stepping into his awaiting form which was already in a shooting stance. His right arm came around my waist. I gulped.

"Don't worry," he insisted with a smile, rifle held out to me, "You can use mine." I gave him a disbelieving look, glancing between him and the rifle for a moment before finally just shaking my head and taking it. It did not feel as heavy as it had when I was a girl of ten, but my arm still lowered slightly under the weight. I hoisted it up.

"Alright, Capn'," I humored, voice scratchy. "Let's see what you got."

His smile was so devilish, is set my cheeks to flaming but I pretended as if I could not tell as he put his arms around me to show me how to hold the gun properly. All his directions were breathed directly into my ear, tickling the lobe as his hands glided over my arms, positioning me like a real shooter. My cheeks continued to feel warm and I could not fathom why my body was reacting this way to William. It was not as if the two of us had not been physically close before. Still, it felt as if the blush of my cheeks was spreading all through my body and I wanted to push him away and pull him closer all at once.

"Now when you think you're ready…" Will whispered ten minutes later when I was positioned perfectly, "Shoot." I breathed deeply, trying to get my wits about me as I closed my let eye to aim. "Keep your eye open!"

Will's sudden order spooked me so bad that I pulled the trigger without meaning to. The shout went wide, completely missing the tree Will had set as my target. The rifle kicked back into my shoulder, I feared bruising it greatly as I yelped, immediately throwing it away from me.

"Goddamnit, William!" I cursed, left hand reaching up to massage my right shoulder. "Do not shout like that! You frightened me!"

"What're you closin' your eye for?" he asked irately, retrieving his gun from the ground and swinging it up onto his shoulder. I rolled my eyes at him as if he were stupid.

"I was aimin'!"

"You got two perfectly good eyes." He stepped right up to me; face inches from mine as he growled. "Either use both of 'em or don't use 'em at all." He pushed the rifle into my hands before backing away. "Now try again."

Lord, but I wanted to spit on his boots. I clutched the rifle, tempted to smashes it on a nearby boulder, but holding myself back. I knew why he was upset. He had lost the use of an eye and I was willing to waste the use of mine. Never mind most people closed one eye to take aim. With a shake of my head, I drew the rifle back up, positioning my body the way he had shown me. Again I took a deep breath, feeling more focused this time as Will was not laying hands on me. I took aim at the tree again, fighting myself to keep both eyes open, and pulled the trigger.

The bullet hit with a 'thwap!' right in the center of the trunk and I gasped in shock, turning to my cousin to make sure he had not shot some other gun unbeknownst to me. He stood watching me with his good eye, hands in pockets as he smirked. No second gun was in sight on him. I had hit it myself.

"I hit it," I stated in disbelief. He nodded casually, making to step to me again. I beat him to it, throwing my arms around his neck, rifle still held in my right hand. He grunted. "I hit it!"

"Yeah, I'd say you did," he chuckled breathily, patting my back with one hand while the other fell to my hip. My heart fluttered as I pulled away just enough to look him in the face. I smiled. "You know, I don't believe I've ever heard you curse before, angel." I gulped.

"Well," I mumbled fitfully, pulling away more now to bring the rifle down between us, "You spark up a fire in me, Cap Hatfield." He blinked as I referred to him by his chosen name for the second time in as many hours. I looked down at the rifle in my hands, tapping it against my palms thoughtfully.

"Is that right?" I shivered. He had stepped right up to me again, mouth close to my ear as he leaned over me slightly. "I've been tryin' to figure how to say the same thing to you for years." I was not sure if my face had ever felt so hot, or if my heart had ever hammered so loudly as he drew away from me. Looking up into his mismatched eyes, I could not seem to form words when his hands came up to cradle my face.

"William?" I muttered, my own hands shaking around the rifle has he pulled my face close to his, brushing away my loose curls with his thumbs. I had just surrendered myself to closing my eyes when I heard the back door of my Uncle Anderson's house slam open in the distance. Our lips had just been about to touch.

"Hey!" I lowered my head and drew away from William as Cotton called out to us. I heard him curse under his breath. "Everyone's comin' back now!"

"Alright, Cotton, we're comin'!" I hollered back, voice cracking oddly. I cleared my throat as he retreated inside once more, shooting worried glances at Will. The young man had removed his hat and was currently swatting it against his thigh angrily. "We…should head inside."

"Yeah," he huffed, glaring out into the tree line as he replaced his hat over his blonde locks.

"It's gettin' dark an-"

"I won't forget this, Abi," he said lowly, invading my personal space and coming nearly chest to chest with me as he spoke lowly into my ear. "You sparked this fire, Abigail Mounts…and it ain't goin' out anytime soon." He drew away then, gently prying his gun from my stiff fingers before heading on towards the house. I watched him go, flabbergasted and with my mouth working like a fish.

How had this happened?

How had I fallen for William without even realizing it?

And how, in turn, had he fallen for me?

I shook my head, thinking someway, somehow, Jenny was to blame for this.

Raising a hand to touch my temple delicately, I squinted up at the sky. It made sense that the family was coming back now; the sun was preparing to set and no Hatfield would be seen in Kentucky after midnight. Resolving myself to thinking more about my trouble with William later, I picked up my skirt and rushed back to the house. Stepping up onto the back porch, I brushed my hair out of my face and made sure my shirt was tucked properly before stepping in.

"Abigail, there you are," my aunt greeted, hand over her swollen belly and my cousin, Detroit, carried on her hip. "Would you mind helping set the table? I am winded." I agreed immediately, squeezing her shoulder as I passed. Will offered to help from his seat on the counter, but I waved him off, not meeting his eye as a blush crept up my neck. It was hot.

In the corner of the room I spotted Cotton with our Pa and Uncle Lias whom was showing Cotton a fiddle he had bought off Tolbert McCoy. My uncle Anderson was already sitting at the table, having some sort of playful conversation with Robert E, Elliot, and Elias. Nancy came out of the girls' room, smiling as she came to help me with the plates. Elizabeth and Mary, she informed, were working on their braiding skills. I had just set down the last plate, wiping my hands on an apron lent to me by my aunt when I turned to address the room, my voice carrying over all the separate conversations.

"Where is Johnse?"


	7. In the Early Hours of the Morning

West Virginia, 1883

The wait for Johnse to return home was like the wait for judgment day. My Uncle Anse was as ornery as a mule and my aunt was near inconsolable with worry. My Pa and Uncle Lias did their best to calm the two Hatfields, but they would not see peace until their eldest son returned. And so we waited.

Cotton had fallen out early, the boys making a spot for him on the floor of their room upstairs. One by one, Robert E, Elliot, and Elias had followed. An hour or so prior, I had put the girls, not including Nancy to bed. She sat in front of me now out on the front porch, between my knees as I plated her hair. William smoked silently beside us, making sure to blow away from our faces whenever he did so. Nancy and I talked of little things. She was fourteen now and curious about boys. I think this path of conversation put me on edge even more so than William who warned his baby sister off any man that was not up to par.

"Do you have any suitors, Abigail?" she prompted me, much like she had Victoria before she was married. I cleared my throat; glad I was seated on William's left side as I replied.

"A few," I murmured, running my fingers deftly through her hair. "But my pa does not approve of the ones he's met."

"So there are ones he has not met?" Nancy teased. I paused, thinking not for the first time that the girl was too sharp for her own good. Sucking on my teeth, I batted her question away like a troublesome fly.

"Do not vex me so," I warned over her incessant giggles. "Or I shall tell Uncle Jim you are partial to McCoy boys."

"I've never looked at a McCoy in my life!" Nancy declared righteously, smacking my shin with her open palm. I kneed her shoulder, sitting her forward so I may continue on her hair.

"What about Bill McCoy?" I asked knowingly, having seen her spare the young man a sideways glance more than once that same day. William was silent.

"He is your age," she stated, as if that nullified anything I might say on the matter.

"So?"

"So what about Calvin McCoy?" she challenged, turning to look at me smugly, pulling her long auburn hair from my fingers. I sat back and threw my hands to the heavens, bringing one down to smack William on the back. He jumped, turning so that he might glare at me with his good eye.

"What _about_ Calvin?" I huffed in exasperation, now looping Will into the conversation. "Why does everyone keep questioning me with him today?"

"Because he has his eye on you," she laughed, moving to rest on her knees between my feet. Apparently her hair would not be finished before she retired to bed. "In fact," she continued, "If you were not always in the company of my brother here, I believe he would have asked your daddy for your hand in marriage the day you turned fifteen."

"Hey!" We both jumped at Will's outburst, turning to face the smoking young man as he frowned. "I don't wanna hear no more about marryin' McCoys," he spat, "From either of ya."

"You can't tell Abi what to do," Nancy protested stubbornly. I reached out my arm and blocked Will from surely laying hand on her as I told her not to worry about me.

"Why don't you go to bed now, hm?" I propositioned her sweetly, "It's nearly midnight." As if on cue, there was a whinny off into the trees. We all turned, Nancy and I gasping as the Hatfield's last horse cleared the tree line. Johnse straddling it.

"I'll go tell pa!" Nancy exclaimed excitedly, rushing up the porch before I could reach out a hand to stop her. And stop her I would have. For Johnse was not alone.

"On my honor," I breathed as William helped me into a standing position, arm secure around my waist. "Is that Roseanna McCoy he's with?"

"Stupid son of a bitch," Will grumbled, tossing his cigar to the ground to be crushed under his boot. He waved off to his older brother who returned the gesture with a brilliant smile thrown in. I shook my head. What on God's green earth was he thinking bringing her here? I asked William. He did not know.

We waited on the bottom step of the porch while Johnse tied up the mare and helped the girl down. From the way he held her close, I could tell he was sweet on her and grabbed my locket in shock. I loved Johnse enough to admit his faults, one of them being he was not the brightest of his siblings. If anyone, that was Nancy, but I did not want to believe that he was so dim as to seduce a McCoy. Randolph and his sons would have his pretty blonde head.

"Hello," the young woman greeted as she came upon us. I could only stare wide eyed at her and my cousin. Will shifted, resting his free hand against the revolver on his right hip. The girl cringed, reaching out her hand anyway. Brave thing. "I'm Roseanna McCoy."

"We know who you are," I breathed, regarding the limb as if it were a snake in the grass. She was a slight girl. A wispy thing. Probably could not way more than a bundling of hay yet I knew she would bring more trouble to us than we had ever seen. A sudden dislike for the girl standing beside my cousin kicked up in my soul and I frowned at her. She withdrew her hand slowly.

The front door opened.

"Abi, William," my father called, "Get in here." With Will's guiding hand on my lower back, I turned away from the McCoy girl, ascending the steps to my uncle's porch and shooting a look at my Pa. He looked amused as well as shocked. As if he had heard the girl was here but not believed it until laying eyes on her. Nancy had clearly recognized the situation for what is was as soon as she left our company. Clever girl.

My pa waved Johnse and Roseanna in after us and before long we were all crowded around my aunt and uncles modest table. As Johnse was pulled off to the side to be spoken to by his father, my aunt motioned Roseanna over so that she may be fed. It was after midnight by this point after all. Knowing I would soon be asleep, my daddy wished me goodnight before retiring onto the porch with Uncle Lias. Will and Johnse's father followed not far behind, having given Johnse a tongue lashing that was visible just by the set of the young man's shoulders.

"Abigail," my aunt Lavicy called my attention. She was eyeing Roseanna much the way I had on the porch. "Since Roseanna is our guest, I hope you will not be opposed to her wearing the night gown that was meant for you." I shook my head silently, casting the girl a side glance that I normally would not have bestowed on a dog.

"I do not want to impose on you-"

"She will wear one of my old night shirts," Will cut across Roseanna making her jump. Johnse looked ready to punch his brother but refrained as his mama dismissed us all to bed. I followed Johnse and Will upstairs after we had situated Roseanne in the room with my female cousins. I would have to squeeze in between Nancy and Emily since my usual spot on the floor would be occupied by the McCoy girl.

"What the hell was you thinkin' bringin' her here?" Will hissed as soon as we were away from the girls' room. Johnse rolled his eyes, no doubt having heard this from his pa. "It was a damn fool thing to do, Johnson."

"Would you lay off me?" Johnse snapped, voice lowered to a whisper as we entered the boys' room. Taking a knee next to Cotton, I tucked him in properly and brushed a hand over his brow as my cousins continued to argue in undertones. "There's nothin' to be done about it now."

"Come mornin' Ole Ran'l is gonna have a bullet with your name on it waitin' at the Tug." William slammed the drawer he had been digging through, pushing past his brother to pull me from the ground. I threw Johnse one last look of disbelief as Will walked me out of the room. We only went as far as the hall, him closing his door behind us. In his free hand was what I suspected to be one of his old night shirts that he was too old to wear. He placed it in my arms. "Sleep well, Abi."

I frowned, hearing the strain of his anger at Johnse in his voice. Reaching up, I ran a hand down the length of his cheek briefly. He stared at me hard. Screwing my courage to the sticking plate, I rose up on tip toe and kissed the cheek I had just stroked. "Goodnight."

I retreated then, head down and night shirt clutched to my chest. I descended the stairs back to the ground level of their home, bidding a final goodnight to my aunt whom was clearing away the last of the dishes. Finally reaching the girls room, I quickly shut the door behind me, pressing my back to it with a heavy sigh. I thought back on kissing William's cheek and a smile came to my face that refused to leave even as I undress and quickly redressed in the night shirt. It fell to my knees and smelled like William. I was still smiling when I crawled into bed next to my small cousins.

I smiled until she spoke.

"Abigail?" I went still, scarcely breathing. "Abigail?" I figured if I didn't answer, she would simply leave me alone. No such luck. "Abigail, I know you ain't sleepin'. You just barely lied down."

I sighed.

"What is it, Roseanna?"

"Why are you so cold with me even though we just met?" Her voice was gentle in the night and unoffending to the ear. I guessed that had she decided to hum or sing rather than pester me, I would have been lulled into a very peaceful sleep.

"You are a McCoy," I whispered over Emily's shoulder. "Ain't that enough?"

"Why should that matter to you?" she asked sounding hurt. "I mean you no harm. Besides, your name is not Hatfield."

"I am of the blood," I hissed, the old wound still stinging as I fought to keep my voice in a whisper. "Same as these girls and same as Johnse."

She was silent for a time.

"I'm sorry."

I was silent for a time.

"It's fine." I prayed she would go to sleep at this. No such luck.

"I do not think you are cold because I am a Hatfield though," she breathed lowly into the still room. I huffed under my breath.

"Why should it matter why I do not care for you?" I asked aloofly.

"Because I would like for us to be friends."

"It would not be wise of you to attempt to be friends with any kin of the Hatfields."

"You think I am not a wise girl?"

"Amongst other things."

This was the final word on the matter as I heard the girl shrink down in her bedding. With a pleased nod, I settled down for sleep, not moving as Emily cuddled into my chest. I held her close, face buried into her hair as the sounds of nature from outside the cabin lulled me into a dreamy sleep. I dreamed of the Hatfields and McCoys but not in the way I usually did. There was no fighting, no guns, no blood. Everyone was happy.

We were at a wedding. Johnse and Roseanna's wedding. Uncle Anse and Randolph had put away their difference and were shaking hands in front of the preacher whom had just joined our families as one. Everyone applauded wildly except me. I clapped my hands gently and shortly before lowering them down to my belly which was swollen as I had never seen it in reality. Leaning over, I took up position under William's arm. He was looking down at me lovingly, hand also resting on my stomach as he leaned down to plant a sweet kiss upon my lips.

The dream was so sweet that a tear leaked from my eye as I was pulled from it. I sniffed, wiping my cheek as I sat up slightly to see what had woken me. My eyes went wide as I saw the bare back of my cousin slipping in besides Roseanna McCoy.

"Johnse don't!" I hissed, setting Emily down onto the bed as I sat up. My cousin jumped, turning his handsome face to me in shock before waving me off in annoyance.

"Go back to sleep!" he urged, seeming to get cozy with the young woman. She stirred.

"How can I with you committin' a hell worthy sin not three feet away?" I shot back, not looking away to save her face as Roseanna came to. She hunched down under the blanket, looking between me and Johnse in shock. He shushed her. "It ain't right."

"Well then you can leave," Johnse huffed, sitting up slightly to throw me a glare. Despite how happy I had just been for him in my dream, I could have taken a horse whip to him now. "My spot in the room I share with my brothers is now vacant – you are welcome to it."

"You pig," I grumbled, scooting to the edge of the bed, careful not to jostle my still sleeping cousins as I rose. I was not one to lay insults to my cousins but Johnse was being down right shameful. I left the room without looking back, closing the door behind me. The sun was already rising into the sky, and I blinked as its dim light broke through the windows of the kitchen. Stepping lightly to the staircase, I climbed it to the floor where my aunt, uncle, male cousins, and brother slept.

Tip toeing around boards I knew to be noisy, I slid into my cousins' room, Johnse having left the door open in his haste. I shut it gently behind me, checking to make sure I had woken no one. Cotton slept on the floor, sprawled out with his bedding around his waist, bare chest moving slowly in sleep. With a gentle shake of my head, I took to my knee beside him, pulling the blanket up further lest he catch a chest cold. When he looked comfortable again, I stood and looked across my cousins. They were all smashed together in what looked to be age order, since the only empty space was between the wall and William. Johnse's spot.

With a tired sigh, I moved around the edge of the beds and crawled slowly in next to Will. Lowering myself slowly to the bedding, I yawned and closed my eyes, prepared to sleep.

"What are you doin' here?" I did not bother even opening my eyes at William's whisper, so used was I to having my sleep interrupted on this night.

"Johnse means to have his way with Roseanna McCoy before the sun is high in the sky," I mumbled, fisting my hands under my chin and curling my knees to my chest. The weight of the bed shifted and I knew Will had pushed up onto his elbow.

"With her consent?" At this I did open just _one_ eye to peer up at my cousin. The other stayed closed and pressed against his pillow.

"Your brother is many things, not one of 'em bein' smart," I huffed tiredly, "But he would not force himself on a girl." Will smirked at this, clearly not used to seeing me so cross with Johnse. Nodding his agreement, he lowered himself back onto the bed, this time near on top of me as he threw his left arm across my body and pulled me close. My heart hitched a beat. We lay like that for a time, me staring intently at the juncture between his neck and shoulder. Like Johnse and my brother, he slept with no shirt on. "Will?"

"Mhm?" he hummed, the sound vibrating through me pleasantly. His chin was resting atop my head and I guessed he may be looking out the window with his one good eye.

"Did you mean what you said earlier?" I whispered, reaching a hand out to run a finger down his neck. "'Bout me sparkin' up a fire in you?" He shifted again, pulling back from me slightly so that he might look me in the face. Had he rested his form completely, only his milky eye would not be pressed to the bedding, so he sat up a bit.

"More than anythin' I ever said in my life," he replied gruffly, mustache twitching as he sniffed. I tilted my head, twisting my neck around so that I could look up at the ceiling.

"S'that mean you love me now?" I questioned after a time. Will pulled me closer to him and I looked down into his milky eye.

"I've always loved you, Abi," he whispered. I blushed.

"Liar." I pushed at his shoulder gently, not wanting him to think I really meant it. "…Since when?"

He chuckled low in his chest, grabbing both my hands in his right one and holding them to his torso. He shrugged, head lowered slightly to look at my fingers. "Oh, since 'bout that election day when you was seven."

"When I threw that clump a dirt a Bud McCoy?" I recalled, smiling. That was the first time Will had stepped in to protect me, starting out years of similar occasions. He laughed, nodding as he brought my hands to his mouth and kissed them gently, his lips lingering against my skin. The smile slipped slowly from my face. "Will?" He raised his eyes to me. "I don't wanna live in sin like Johnse and Roseanne."

He brought his face to mine, our noses brushing as he lifted his left hand to stroke the side of my face. "We won't," he promised seriously, "I swear 'fore God, I will not lay a hand on you til we're married."

The mention of us being married brought a smile back to my face and I physically shivered in excitement. I was going to be a Hatfield. My longest dream would finally come true, and then I would have William too. "When do you plan to ask my pa for my hand?"

"I already did." I tilted my head at him, wondering when he had found the time in the last day. "I asked him the day you turned fifteen." My eyes went wide and I was too shocked to lay still any longer. I sat up in the bed.

"What'd he say?" I asked down at him where he lay on his back. He shrugged, clearly having come to terms with whatever my father had said a long time ago.

"He said his opinion meant nothin' without your consent, and he would not promise you to a man you did not love." I looked away at this, raising my hand my chin in amazed thought. My father loved my brother and me of course, but all my life I had willingly accepted the idea that Ellison was his favorite. At this revelation however, I realized that he had no favorite, that he loved us both equally if not differently which was understandable since Cotton was indeed special. Happy tears filled my eyes and I pressed a hand over them as I lay back down besides Will who watched me in silent confusion.

"What else?" I sniffled, moving my arm over my face so that my tears were hidden in the crook of my elbow. Will stroked my upper arm gently.

"He said if you accepted when the time came, that we would have his blessin'."

I sobbed, a happy noise deep in my throat as I rolled to William who held his arms out to me. Snuggling into his chest I cried happily until I wore myself out and laid exhausted in his arms. My fiancé's arms. He would not be my cousin any more, he would be my fiancé and then my husband. I smiled tiredly, snaking an arm over his middle.

"I love you, William," I sniffled, rubbing my face against his bare chest. He squeezed me tightly.

"I love you too."

We passed the rest of the morning speaking lowly of things to come. We agreed on a Spring wedding, here on Hatfield property with all our family and friends surrounding us. We did not want a long engagement. A year tops. He wanted his best friend, Skunk Head, to be his best man. When I told him a wedding party was no longer 'in fashion' he scoffed and said it would not make a lick of difference if we kept the old tradition since we were nixing the new one of a long engagement. I agreed, saying his sisters would be my maids. We discussed rings briefly, but not being one for ostentation, I declared that a simple gold band would do me fine.

We talked until Robert E awoke, stumbling blindly out of bed in search of breakfast, not seeming to notice me at all as he tripped over Cotton. My brother woke with a yelp, rubbing his sleepy eyes childishly. When he spotted me curled up next to William, he invited himself to lie between us, elbowing my future husband in the eye accidently as he settled down to fall back to sleep. All his moving about had woken Elliot and Elias who were simply sitting up in bed, blinking blearily. The mood was broken quite thoroughly. I shot William an amused look over my twin's snowy head. He had a hand over his milky eye and was grumbling.

"It'll be like this when we have babies of our own," I informed him, not feeling the need to whisper any longer since I knew Cotton to sleep like the dead. He was snuggled into my chest now, hugging me tightly around the waist. William huffed.

"Lord, I pray not." With a groan, he stood, ushering Elliot and Elias to do the same so that he might help them dress. Bed now to myself and Cotton, I sighed contently, settling down with my cheek pressed to my brother's head and closed my eyes. I was exhausted. "Abigail, get up."

"No," I mumbled, reaching out blindly to yank the blanket over my head. "Your brother woke me up hours ago and I have not rested since."

"Well there's no time for it now," William informed, yanking the blanket back from my face. I groaned. "We have to go talk with my ma and pa." I sighed at this, knowing he was right, and sitting up with Cotton still hugging me tightly. I shook him awake gently, rubbing my eyes in an identical way to him as we both got up and followed Will, Elliot, and Elias downstairs. Cotton was not shamed to be seen bare chested and I had to receive clothes from Nancy.

"Mornin'," my aunt greeted as she hurried around to set plates for everyone. Waving at her and my uncle tiredly, I retreated into my cousins' room to dress quickly. Only Elizabeth was still in bed, and I took her to my hip before I left again. Everyone was gathered sleepily around the table, the only ones looking truly awake being my father and Uncle Lias who had slept in the spare room. I kissed them both good morning as I sat with my cousin in my lap. Will sat across from me, looking jumpy.

"Where is Johnse?" I spoke up, feeling this question was coming too frequently. "And the McCoy girl?"

"He is leavin' her off at the Tug," Uncle Anderson answered, pipe already in hand. "He should be back momentarily." I nodded understandingly, thanking my aunt as she placed a plate in front of me. I worried for her sometimes. Tending to all these folks with a baby growing in her belly.

The table settled into pleasant chatter and William and I continued to shoot each other furtive glances. He nodded me off to my father and in turn I nodded him off towards his. His mustached tilted as he frowned at me before turning to talk up the table. Clearing his throat he unintentionally made everyone quiet down.

"Daddy?" he said nervously. Devil Anse turned from my father to regard his boy.

"Yes, son?"

"There's uh…" He shot me a look. "There's somethin' I wanted to ask you about."

"By all means, Cap," my uncle nodded, removing his pipe thoughtfully as he too took a chance to glance at me. I lowered my eyes to the table.

"Well I was wonderin'-"

"Daddy!" The door slammed open and Johnse tumbled into the house, propped up by the McCoy girl who was looking particularly glum. A great blood stain soaked his side and I cursed under my breath, as did William. We would not be getting consent on our marriage today.


	8. Hell To Pay

**This chapter changes the length of time it takes for the news of Roseanna's pregnancy to spread from what is shown in the series.**

West Virginia, 1883

"Johnse's a damned fool," Will grunted, hurling another stone out into the lake. I squinted across the glassy water just as its surface was shattered and shrugged.

"Well, God gave him such good looks, he couldn't very well have givin' him a whole abundance a brains too now could he?"

We had not gotten our family's consent to our marriage that day Johnse had returned with the McCoy girl in toe. Nor the next day. Or the day after. Or the day after. Near two months had gone by and Roseanna McCoy was still sleeping in my cousins' room, kissing on Johnse when the two thought no one was around to see them. I truly believed they were in love, but I did not approve of their actions. Nor how her family had disowned her in such a way. My Pa would never tell me to leave.

I had taken time after church to come visit today, dressed in my Sunday best. My bonnet sat next to me on the bank now as I watched William continue to hurl stones. I had brought Cotton along. He was up at the house, playing games with the girls who just adored him. I watched after William, seeing the anger grow in him with every rock he chucked. "I don't believe Johnse is in that water," I teased lightly.

"I wish like hell that he were," the young man grunted, removing his hat and swatting it against his thigh. His thin frame heaved in agitated breaths. "It ain't fair that we have to wait for him to get his head out of his asshole to be married." I shifted at his language, not being partial to cussing myself as anyone would tell you. Again I looked out over the lake and had to frown. I was angry at Johnse too, but not because I felt he was in anyway infringing on our plans to be married.

"If he is not careful," I mused slowly, drawing Will's attention to me. "She will end up pregnant and the McCoy boys will move hell and earth to track him down and kill him." I could tell William agreed from the way he shifted his weight, hands on his hips. Despite whatever Will said, he loved Johnse and did not want to see him come to harm for plain idiocy.

"I wish the girl would return to her family."

As Will took a seat beside me, I leaned into him, my head on his shoulder as he sighed. "Do you think he is sincere?" I questioned, brow furrowed, "In his wish to marry her that is." William shrugged.

"As sincere as you can expect from Johnse." I did not know how truly sincere this was but did not want to insult my cousin by saying so. "Do you think she is sincere in her love for him?"

"Yes," I answered automatically, having seen the way the young woman stared after my cousin. "As sincere as I am in my love for you." We both knew this love was unquestionable and grew silent for a time, simply enjoying each other's company. A bird flew by overhead and I blinked in its shadow.

"Hey, Abi! Will!" We both turned, seeing Nancy hurrying down toward us, Cotton holding her hand and smiling thoughtlessly. "The McCoy girl has left!" I gaped.

"Do not hornswoggle me, Nancy," I called as Will helped me to my feet. "Now tell me true-"

"She's gone!" Nancy beamed, coming right up to us, hair bouncy against her back. "Saddled up her horse and rode back to her family in Kentucky. Mama does not reckon she'll be comin' back. Johnse is-"

"Why?" Will interrupt suspiciously. Nancy cast him an annoyed look.

"How would I know?" She rolled her eyes. "Anyhow, Johnse is beside himself. He took to his horse to head over to the local tavern." I scrunched my nose in distaste at this. Trust Johnse to comfort himself with liquor and whores. "Will you get after him, William?"

"I will not," her older brother huffed, guiding me around our kin so that we may start making our way back up the hill towards the house. "Johnse is twenty-one years old, he can go to a whorehouse alone if he pleases."

I smacked my hand over his chest, nodding my head at Cotton and my young cousin when he gave me a confused look. Shaking his head, he took my hand in his, helping me clear the top of the hill before reaching a hand down to Nancy and Cotton. It was barely high noon, yet I suspected Johnse would be out all night.

"Abigail, would you come in here a moment." I looked to see my aunt waving to me from the back porch. With a quick squeeze to Will's hand, I hurried to her, asking if there was anything she needed help with. "Just assist me with washin' these clothes would you." Rolling up my sleeves, I scrubbed my cousins' bed clothes in the wash basin, peaking at my aunt out of the corner of my eyes every few moments. "If you have something to say, Abi," she muttered, not raising her eyes from her work, "Just say it."

"The McCoy girl has left," I blurted out, not knowing what I meant by it.

"She has."

"Of her own volition?"

"One can assume." The tone of her voice told me I would not be wise to continue with this line of questioning. With a shaky nod, I resumed my work, water sloshing out onto my good dress as she had not offered to lend me an apron. Now was my chance.

"Aunty-"

"You and Cap wish to be man and wife." She said it so casually, one might think she was commenting on the weather. I froze, drawing my hands away from the basin, dragging Robert E's night shirt with me so that water sloshed onto the ground. I barely noticed.

"W-Would you be opposed?" I questioned warily, eyebrow raised in confusion at her emotionless expression. Didn't she love me anymore?

"Abi." She drew up from her work, one hand on her belly as the other brushed her forehead. "I've never seen two people more meant for each other than you and my son." She said it in such a way that I knew it should not give me hope. "But with all this feudin' goin' on at present…I just don't think it's the right time." The gloom that settled over me was so stifling that I couldn't help but take a shaky breath. My aunt turned to me, pulling the sopping shirt from my hands and drawing me away. "I'm not opposin' you two," she insisted lowly, stroking a hand over my face. "I'm just askin' you to wait til it's safer."

Safer? It would never be safer. This feud would eat Ole Ran'l and Devil Anse up until there was nothing left. Pulling away from my aunt, I wiped at my eyes quickly as I nodded.

"Alright," I sniffed, not meeting her eye as I made to exit the house on the excuse that I had promised my father I'd be home. I had done no such thing. As I stepped out into the daylight on the front porch, I spotted Nancy with Cotton and the girls sitting not far from where I stood. Further off to my right, I could see Will in the distance wrestling with Elliot as Rob and Elias watched on cheering. I did not want to see him just now. Hurrying down to untie Trixie, I pulled her along beside me, walking over to the girls. "Come on, Cotton, we are leavin'."

"Can I say bye to Cap first?" my brother asked innocently as my cousins shot me questioning looks. I never left so soon after arriving, and never without saying goodbye to Will, Cotton was disappointed when I said there was no time, but he'd never fought me on anything and so got into the saddle when I told him to.

"What's the matter, Abigail?" Nancy called up to me, Emily sitting in her lap. I denied anything was as I hauled myself into the saddle in front of Cotton. When I noticed him waving, I turned and saw Will walking toward us, brow furrowed in confusion.

"We just have to go," I said as way of farewell before kicking Trixie into a gallop. Cotton yelped, hugging me so tightly around my waist I had to tell him to ease up.

"Abi, is somethin' wrong?" he hollered into my ear, sounding childlike and concerned even at this high volume. I ignored him, urging our old mare on faster as we ripped through the forest. I was not partial to these high wind speeds, but I could not bear to be questioned at present.

We reached our own cabin in record time and I slid so quickly from the saddle that my head spun and I had to grab Trixie's bridle to keep from tumbling. The old girl was sweating and I felt bad for pushing her so hard. Lord knew she was aged. Glancing up at my brother from beneath my mussed hair I waved at him. "Get down from there, Cotton," I huffed, hands on hips as I tried to catch my breath. "I have to put Trixie away."

"No, you're actin' funny," the young man claimed, shaking his head from side to side, pale face frowning at me. I growled, an anger I could not name growing inside me as I fisted my hands in my hair manically.

"Ellison, get off the horse, _now_!" I barked harshly just as the front door to our home opened and boots came pounding across the porch.

"Hey!" my pa called out, pulling me away from the stricken face of my twin. His hand was tight on my upper arm and I flinched, having never had him lay hand on me in such a way. "Don't talk to your brother that way!"

My Pa had never shouted at me before and it ground me so fast I nearly toppled over. Turning to look up at my brother, the afflicted look that he wore tore at my heart and my eyes watered almost immediately leading to me breaking down into tears.

"I'm sorry," I sobbed into my father's chest as he cradled me in confusion. Pulling away, I reached up to take Cotton's hand in mine and place it in my hair. "I'm so sorry, Elli," I whimpered, body racked with tiny sobs.

"Ah, it's alright, Abi," he whispered, stroking my head. "Everyone yells at me sometimes." I cried harder.

"Ellison," my father cut in, pulling me back to his chest. "Take Trixie to water out back." My brother complied, riding out of sight as my father helped me to the porch step, pulling out his handkerchief to mop at my face. "What's gotten into you, angel?" he said lowly, patting a heavy hand on my back. "You've never shouted at your brother before."

"It's those _damned _McCoys," I sobbed, taking the kerchief from him and wiping under my eyes. "All this feudin' goin' on has made it so that it may be years before William and I can get married." I wept with new passion, burying my face in my hands as my father continued to rub comforting circles in my back.

"Ah," he said with understanding. "So he finally asked you then?"

"Yes," I sniffed, sitting up slightly and shrugging my shoulders in a hopeless gesture. "But Aunt Lavicy says-"

"Your aunt Lavicy's word is not law," my Pa chuckled lowly, jostling me a bit in attempts to rouse a smile out of me. It did not work.

"It is in that house," I hiccupped bitterly, knowing deep down the woman had most likely sent the McCoy girl away. Looking away, I rolled down my sleeves that I had left up in my haste to escape the place. "Those men do not _breathe_ without her say so." My father laughed, giving me a one armed, affectionate hug before sighing.

"How long ago did Will ask for your hand?"

"Two months," I replied, voice scratchy. My father whisteled lowly.

"Then you two have already waited quite some time." I nodded, wiping a stray tear from my cheek. "But I promise you, angel…by this time next year you two will be man and wife."

"But that's so far _away_, Daddy," I moaned, voice quivering, threatening to cry again. My father hugged me close.

"It seems far, I know," he conceded. "But you two will be so busy plannin' the time will just fly by!"

"What about the McCoys?" I challenged darkly, countenance growing dark as I considered the family that troubled me so.

"After this trouble with Roseanna and Johnse has passed, I doubt they'll be any trouble." I gave him a disbelieving look. His own expression of assurance did not waver in the slightest. He believed what he was saying and therefore, I had to believe it to. I nodded my agreement and he nudged my shoulder. "Good, now for the next few days, I want you to hang around here," he informed, taking to his feet. "I've no doubt William will question about your absence and when Lavicy gives him the speech she gave you, the Devil's son's gon' be fit to be tide and I don't want the two a you within fightin' distance of each other. Might call the weddin' off before it's even on."

I laughed good humoredly at this, knowing my daddy spoke the truth. William and I still had our tiffs. Even in the last two months of happily prewedded bliss we had fought. Trivial matters, of course but we were both bull headed and did not like to back down. It would be better if I strayed off him until _I_ at least had a chance to cool. I swore to my father I would stay close to home.

I spent the first day making up with Cotton for my orneriness. Though he dismissed it as nothing, I felt terrible for having shouted at my brother, the person I loved most in the this world and the next. My first day of confinement was spent playing any manner of hair brained games he could come up with, following the rules even if he saw fit to change them half way through the game. It was fun.

The second day, Cotton went to go see Cap himself, under strict order to tell him nothing of my sudden absence. I had a feeling Cotton would tell William I had told him to say as such and that the sharp shooter would be insulted, but I could not help it. When Cotton had departed, I cleaned our home from top to bottom, rendering it completely spotless by the time Cotton came home claiming he had told William "nothin'".

On the third day, I finally realized how much time I spent with Will. With Cotton gone and the house clean, I found myself wondering through rooms like a ghost, turning over random objects before replacing them. Besides my brother and Nancy, William was my best friend and with all of them at my uncle's house there was nothing to _do_! I tried to read for a time but it had been a while since I read a book for myself, usually preferring to have William read them to me, and I found the stories boring when read aloud in my own, higher voice. I was near mad by the time my father and Cotton arrived home.

By noon on the fourth day, I decided I had cooled down long enough. I would wait _two _years to marry William, just so long as I was still able to keep his company. I told my father as such and he deemed me fit to go. Saddling up Trixie and promising Cotton I would tell our cousins hello for him, I took to the trail at a pace not much gentler than the one I had set three days prior. Trixie huffed beneath me, no doubt tired of my rambunctious riding as we traveled in silence nearly half the way there.

"Hey, Abi!" A call from behind me caused me to turn and I spotted Johnse, coming from some unknown place, turned towards the direction of Kentucky. I reared my mount back, circling around to greet my cousin. "You're a sight for sore eyes."

"I could say the same to you," I chuckled, pulling to a halt just beside him. His clothes looked a day old and he smelt of stale liquor and a smokey whore. I scrunched my nose at him good naturedly. "Where're ya headed?"

"Roseanna McCoy's carryin' my baby," he said proudly, "I'm goin' to make an honest woman outta her."

I was proud of how well I trained my face to stay in a mask of _pleasant_ surprise. This was what I had feared most, and I as I looked into my cousin's clearly ecstatic eyes, I could feel my hopes of being married within the year slowly begin to slip away. Reaching a hand out, I offered it to my cousin.

"Congratulations, Johnse," I murmured lowly as he shook my hand, not seeming to notice how gravely I regarded him. With a nod, he inquired as to my destination. "Oh, I-I was just going to pay a visit to your brother, William." He tilted his head.

"Oh, he won't be in," he told me thoughtfully, "I do believe he's gone huntin' with our Uncle Jim this mornin'." My heart fell even further if possible. At my despairing look, Johnse seemed to grow wise of matters outside of himself for once. "Well…you know you could ride with me to Roseanna's auntie's house," he offered kindly. "Cap'll be back by the time we return, I'm certain."

The thought of accompany Johnse on his path to wreck his family's name did not sound appealing in the least, but I had nothing to go home to, and no desire to sit in William's house [with his mother] waiting for him to return. I shrugged and thanked Johnse for the invitation before accepting. He beamed, looking prouder than ever as he waited for me to steer Trixie around to head for Kentucky.

We rode at a moderate pace, still talking . Mostly Johnse telling me his plans for Roseanna and the baby. Despite everything I was truly happy for him. I only wanted the best for my cousin, even if it meant some misfortune fell on my shoulders for a time.

Our light mood darkened immediately, at least in my opinion, when five McCoy brothers trotted into our path, guns drawn. James, Tolbert, Calvin, Pharmer, and Bud all rode up before us, looking grimly at Johnse who greeted them with a smile. Calvin shot me a worried glance, obviously wondering why I was present. I shifted in my saddle, recalling worriedly that I had not packed my rifle into my saddle bag.

"Well," Johnse greeted, smiling as if these men were kin. I shot him a disbelieving look as the McCoys formed a semi-circle around us. "Just the boys I wanted to see. You can ride with my cousin and me to your aunt Betty's. I'm going to rescue my bride and make an honest woman outta her."

"Just you shut the hell up!" Tolbert spat, causing our mounts to flinch. "You ain't lyin' your way out of it this time."

"I ain't lyin'," Johnse laughed, leaning casually in his saddle, still not sensing the gravity of the situation. "Just found out Roseanna's carryin' my baby…so I'm goin' to get 'er seein' as how our daddies are bein' such horses asses."

The punch Tolbert landed on my cousin should have been expected, but I still screamed as Johnse fell from his saddle. Tolbert was off his horse and looming over him before I could even get one leg over my mount. He kicked Johnse repeatedly, before pulling a gun on him.

"No!" I cried, charging the tall ginger from behind and grabbing his gun arm. With an angry roar, he threw me back and pistol whipped Johnse who slumped to the ground. With a frightened whimper, I got to my feet and ran to Trixie, grabbing her bridle. I had to get help.

"Tolbert, don't!" Calvin's shout was almost completely obscured as Tolbert fired his pistol, shooting my poor brown mare through the head. Her blood splattered my face as I screamed, a hysterical sob ripping through my chest. I did not have my wits about me enough to release her bridle and was thrown roughly down as her giant body collapsed to the ground with a heavy sort of 'thud'.

"Trixie!" I wept, kneeling over the animal, blood dripping down my face in streams. Looking up, I screamed and threw my arms over my head as I saw Tolbert take aim at me.

"Tolbert, enough!" James had dismounted and roughly grabbed his brother, yanking him away from me. The two struggled, Tolbert trying to get at me while James attempted to hold him back. I stayed low to the ground in case the gun went off accidental like.

On my belly, I made crawl to Johnse but this action was not received well by Tolbert who, with another manic cry, he freed himself from his brother. I shrieked, coming up on my knees, palms up as he approached. There was murder in his eye as he brought his hand back, thankfully pistol free, and slapped me across the face. I crashed to the ground, pain shooting across my cheek as his brother's all spoke up in outraged protest. Still sobbing, I rolled onto my back and looked up at the sky. My face hurt, most specifically my lip and I suspected it was bleeding from the new trickle that joined the others running down my chin. Squeezing my eyes shut, I cried and prayed to God for William to come.

"Please," I whispered brokenly as I heard James come to squat beside me. I prayed he was not aiming a gun at my head, but sent up my final request for God to receive my soul into his hands just in case. I had never been so scared in my life as when his tall shadow had been thrown across my form.

"You can't just kill her," he ground out, voice cracking as he turned to look over his shoulder at Tolbert.

"She'll run and tell Devil Anse as soon as she gets the chance!" Tolbert fumed.

"Then we'll take her with us," James declared, turning to look up at his remaining brothers. I sobbed once more. God had spared my soul. "No one touches a hair on her head, or else. Calvin, she'll ride with you."

"That's bullshit, Jim," Tolbert growled, glaring down at me as Calvin dismounted and approached. "She's Hatfield kin."

"She's a woman, Tolbert!" James yelled. We all flinched. James always seemed the most soft spoken of his family. Calvin reached me and began trying to pull me from the ground. James nodded at me in what I assumed was an apologetic manner, before straightening and going to have words with his brother.

"No," I begged meekly, trying to pry my arm from Calvin with no success. "Calvin, please don't."

"I ain't gon' hurt you, Abigail," he promised, gently but firmly yanking me up off the ground. He marched me over to his own horse, picking me up round the waist and settling me before swinging up behind me. I could not ride in the back of the saddle because that would give me the chance to run away. His arms came around me and I cursed myself for every thinking him handsome. He was no better than Tolbert or any other McCoy. "Just don't fight us," he said into my ear. Tears slipped from my face onto his hand.

"Are you gon' kill us?" I whimpered, looking to my cousin whom James and Tolbert were now strapping to his mount which was tied to Pharmer's. Calvin did not answer and as I turned to look him in the eye, he would not meet my gaze. That was answer enough. If help did not come soon, we would not survive the night.

But as the McCoy boys began to move us over into Kentucky territory, I knew help would come. Devil Anse and William would come all armed and terrible, riding mounts with hooves of lightning that would never die out. The devil and his son would come for us.


	9. The Final Hour

Kentucky, 1883

It began to rain just as the McCoys spirited us across the Big Salty River. We arrived at what I knew to be Harmon McCoy's old place sometime later. The sun had set at our backs while we rode and it was dark now as Calvin dragged me from his saddle and marched me into the house after his brothers who had a now conscious Johnse held between them. Rain clung to all of us and pooled on the floor boards as we entered the home. Jim ordered Calvin to start a fire and he passed me off to Pharmer who was quick to find some rope and bind my hands together.

"You think you should be doin' that?" Bud asked, glancing nervously into my face. I had not spoken since they had taken us and was not interested in doing so now. "Jim said not to touch-"

"Well this ain't hurtin' her!" Pharmer argued, round face looking anxious as he tightened the rope and guided me into a chair. I sat heavily, not looking anywhere but straight ahead, my hair sticking to my face which was still caked in Trixie's blood. The rain had not come before it dried onto my skin. "Besides, we don't want her clawin' at our faces if she gets the chance."

"I don't think she would-"

"Get away from her," Tolbert ordered from his spot standing in front of a tied up Johnse. He turned to my cousin after giving me a hateful sneer and drew his gun. "S'pose you're wonderin' why I don't kill you right away," he said conversationally, taking aim at Johnse's chest, but doing nothing. Johnse shot me a terrified look around his shoulder.

"Cause you know it ain't right," he said lowly, doing his best to back into the wall as Tolbert barked his reply.

"Horseshit! I'm gon' blow your brains out right at sunrise…like they do in the army." Each of his brothers looked up at this, pale faced and soaking wet. I guessed none of them had openly admitted to what this night would be as of yet. "Se,e I want you to know its comin' and I want you to think about it for all those hours." Tolbert's voice had risen as he spoke to my cousin but grew soft again as he turned slowly to me. I drew back in my chair, eyeing him up and down affrightedly. "See all the _torment_ you and all the Hatfields have brought down on us?"

"My cousin respects your sister, Tolbert," I said, sounding far braver than I felt, as I met the tall man's eye. He jaw flexed. "You know that. Especially now that she's carryin' his baby." I eyed each of the McCoys in turn, the only one man enough to hold my gaze being Jim. "Please…Let him find a preacher and make it legal."

Tolbert looked enraged as he stepped back from me, shaking his head. "Nah, it's too late for that." I thought he would leave it at that, but suddenly he reached out and grabbed my bound wrists in his free hand. The rope fell from Pharmer's hand easily as he lifted me from the chair, and tossed me down at Johnse's feet. "I'M GON' SHOOT YOU BOTH DEAD COME DAWN, AND I'M GON' TELL YOU WHAT TIME IT IS _EVERY HOUR_ WE GET CLOSER!"

"Goddamnit, Tolbert!" Jim snapped, standing from his chair and taking a knee next to me. I was unable to sit up on my own, what with my hands tied, but I spared the McCoy a grateful glance as he helped me into a sitting position, leaning me back against my cousins legs before turning on his brother. "I said no one touches Abigail."

"She can't live," Tolbert panted, seeming as if he was trying to convince himself of this as well as his brother. "Everyone'll know it was us that shot Johnse."

"Everyone'll know anyway," I ground out.

"SHUT UP, YOU STUPID BITCH!" Tolbert spit in my face and I flinched, wishing I had free hands to wipe it away as Jim set to screaming and slapping at his younger brother. Over my shoulder, Johnse asked after my health.

"How do you think I am?" I snapped angrily, unable to help myself. I did not want to blame my cousin for our unfortunate fate, but I knew deep down that had he not been so quick with a McCoy I would not be in this situation. If he had merely kept to himself, I could be married to William by now.

Thinking of William, my face crumbled in despair. Oh, but I was never going to see him again. We would never have the wedding we planned that morning in his bedroom. Never have sons he could teach to be sharp shooters like their daddy. Never grow old together. Never do anything. My heart felt that it would burst in the depth of my sadness and I brought my bound hands up to my face in fists and sobbed just once. Had I been looking up I would have seen that my sob had gained the attention of Calvin, Bud, and Pharmer and stopped the squabbling between Tolbert and James. My sob settled an eerie silence over the cabin as the McCoy boys realized they had set themselves up to kill a woman here tonight.

"Instead of a last meal," Johnse began evenly, "Can my cousin and I get a last request?" I lifted my head at this, sniffing in confusion.

"Hell no!" Tolbert barked immediately before glancing at us over his shoulder, "What do you want?"

Johnse nudged me with his knee to speak first and I hiccupped. "Um…I want to see my brother and daddy one last time," I snuffled pitifully. "And William," I added as an afterthought, knowing they would not grant this request.

"Who?" Tolbert huffed, not recognizing the Christian name.

"Cap Hatfield," Johnse explained. "My brother. Her cousin."

"Cap Hatfield would shoot us dead the moment he saw her in our company," Bud said nervously. Over by the fire I saw Calvin shoot me a curious glare.

"Denied," Tolbert concluded, nodding to Johnse, "You?"

"I wanna to see Roseanne one last time and say goodbye to her proper," my cousin answered without pause, seeming to think they would honestly allow such a thing after denying mine own request. "And then I will stand up tall when you kill me I swear to God," Johnse continued, casting a cold look over all the McCoy brothers. "And when I get to heaven I won't ask god to send your souls burnin' to hell for what you did to us."

They all seemed spooked at this, except Tolbert, who drew his pistol from his pocket, keeping it aimed at the ground as he spoke. "You're the one goin' to hell…" he breathed maliciously, moving his eyes from Johnse to myself and back again. "And you ain't gon' be askin' God for squat."

We all went silent for a moment.

"R-Roseanna does love him,"Pharmer muttered at last, drawing all eyes, "She'll hate us forever if we don't allow it."

"No I said!" Tolbert bellowed, turning his back on us now, seeming tired of the conversation.

"It doesn't sit right with me," came the small voice of Bud McCoy from where he sat up on the window sill. His dark eyes were fixed on my blood smeared face. "Killin' a woman and all…can I go home?"

"Sure, Bud," Jim agreed, standing to walk his brother out. "You shouldn't be here when we do the killin' anyway."

"Yeah, you're too young," Pharmer agreed, ignoring the fact he was only somewhere between mine and William's ages of sixteen and nineteen. Bud shot him an annoyed glance, eyes avoiding the area where my cousin and I were creating a puddle of rain water on the floor.

"I ain't too young," he protested as he reached the door, Jim holding it open for him. "I just don't feel too well."

"Bye, Bud," I said, voice horse. It was merely a common courtesy, bidding someone farewell as they departed from your presence, but Johnse took it as a sign to taunt the young man.

"Yeah, bye, Bud," he mimicked with a bitter laugh. "Hell, I'll see you on the other side."

Bud left, face ashen as he glanced at us for what we all believed to be the last time. I did not begrudge the boy his departure. If I were in a similar situation at that age, I would have wanted to go home too. Hell I wanted to go home now. Looking back up at Johnse, I saw that he had set to thumping his head on the wall behind him, no doubt cursing himself and his foolishness to hell and back. And if he was not, then I was.

"It's three hours to sunrise," Tolbert told us, eyes cast to a small gold pocket watch. "You two gimme any trouble, and I'll break ranks and kill ya early." With that said, he took a seat next the fire place, slouched over like a sack of horse feed. I shifted uncomfortable, my dress chaffing against my thighs as I sat back to wait for my death. I rested my head against Johnse's thigh, feeling sleep pull at me despite myself. I supposed the excitement of the day had taken it out of me.

"Don't sleep, Abi angel," Johnse warned in a whisper, eyeing the McCoys across the room from us. My hooded eyes barely flinched in recognition of his voice. "We gotta stay alert if we wanna-"

"Shut up, Johnse," I sighed, bone tired and weary of his dimwittedness. I vowed I would not let the last words I spoke to him be hateful, but in that moment I had to bring _myself _peace. "You have damned us both with your unquenchable appetite for romantic trouble and blatant disregard for the guidance of those far wiser than yourself." Turning my torso toward him, I fixed him with a stony gaze. "We will die here this night and the only person to blame is you."

"Abigail, I-"

"Hey, shut up," Tolbert ordered, moving to his feet once more. Stalking over, he reached down and pulled me from my spot as if I weighed no more than a toddler would. "I don't want you two conspirin' none." He dragged me over to the fire place, setting me down gently next to his chair. "You'll sit with me."

The next hour passed in utter silence, with me doing my best to dry my hair along the fire without burning it. Calvin sat across from me with Jim to my back and Tolbert occupying the chair I leaned tiredly against. The furthest McCoy from me was Pharmer, and he sat a few feet off from Johnse, eyeing the young man, visibly troubled. As Tolbert recited the time for the first stretch, my stomach growled loudly. I had departed from my home at high noon, coming upon Johnse and hereafter the McCoys but an hour later. We had ridden til the sun had long since set and were now waiting for sunrise. I had not eaten since breakfast time.

"Calvin," Tolbert said, not looking at his younger brother as he stared, transfixed, at his pocket watch. "Go get the tucker bag from my saddle outside." Calvin was quick to comply, stepping out into the now dry night and not returning until he had his brother's requested item in hand. "There's some oats crushed up in there," he informed, still not raising his eyes. "Boil them over the fire and feed Abigail her last meal."

I suspected he had added the last part simply to keep up his image in front of his brothers. Otherwise he would have simply asked Calvin to feed me.

"Tolbert-"

"Do _not_ untie her hands," Tolbert cut across Pharmer, finally lifting his eyes to give Calvin a stern look. The raven haired young man nodded, giving me a look before setting to making the dish. I turned curiously to Tolbert who leaned against his knee, giving me his broad back. I wondered why he would even bother to waste the food on me when he himself would see that I would not live to digest it.

Calvin boiled the oats in water Jim had offered up. Scooping the lumpy substance into a bowl left behind from Lord knew when, he asked Pharmers help in moving me to the table by the window. I wondered at the reason men seemed to believe a woman with simply her hands bound had also lost use of her legs. I sat down heavily, shifting in the uncomfortable chair.

"Sorry if this isn't too good," Calvin apologized awkward from his seat across from me. "I was never to good with cookin' and such." He took a spoonful of oats and held it up to my lips. I pulled back at first, not wanting to be treated so, but caved as my stomached grumbled again. Taking the spoon in my lips, I cleared it of oats and sat back again, swallowing. Any skill Calvin had or lacked as a cook was lost on me, since I barely tasted the food. Some last meal

"Thank you, Calvin," I grumbled lowly, eyes sweeping across the table top, hands placed before my chest. Letting my eyes wonder to the fire, I caught the second oldest McCoy boy turn his eyes back to looking at his watch. "Thank you, Tolbert." He spared me the briefest of glances, but all my suspicions were confirmed in that glance. He was nervous about having to kill us.

I ate the oats without complaint, listening as Calvin chatted nervously. He wiped my chin when I mussed up and brought me water when I grew thirsty. I could tell from their glances, that his brothers did not like these exchanges. I did not pay them any heed however as Calvin continued to speak to me as if we were not in the situation we were in. Him and his brothers having just kidnapped my cousin and I with plans to shoot us at dawn.

"You know," he said sometime later when the last of the meal was done and the bowl taken away. Tolbert had ordered Pharmer to make another for Johnse to eat. "You weren't s'posed to be part a this."

"I know," I said through a yawn, my jaw stretching as I fought off exhaustion. Tolbert had marked the hour a second time not too long ago. Less than two hours left now. "I would not usually have been ridin' with Johnse, but I suppose…it is God's will." I said it out of habit, but as it passed my lips I realized it was most likely true. For whatever reason, God saw fit to end my short life here and have done with it. I was bitter on the fact.

"I would not kill you of my own volition," he whispered urgently, leaning across the table so his brothers would not hear him. "I've always liked you, Abigail." I stared back at him not unkindly, but with no extra helping of warmth either. He liked me, but he would see me shot dead without protest.

"I know that, Calvin," I said coolly, motioning for more water. He complied, picking up the bowl and coming round to stand beside me since it was the only way for this to work.

"Truth be told," he grunted, taking a knee and turning my chair towards him slightly. He brought the bowl to my lips, tipping the water into my mouth gently. "I may have ignored the fact you're daddy's a Hatfield and asked permission to marry you had you not always been hangin' around that one eyed ape."

I spat in his face.

He gasped, blinking in shock as streams of water clung to his skin and hair while I glared at him. His brothers had heard the spurt of liquid and Tolbert came over, cursing at me angrily as I turned to stare at the wall.

"I'm done eatin'," I said bitterly.

"Yes, you are." Tolbert grabbed the back of my chair, dragging it away from the table roughly and slamming it against the wall. I nearly toppled out, but I kept a straight back. Tolbert crouched, putting his face in mine as he hissed, "Try anythin' like that again and I'll put a bullet in that pretty lil' head a yours."

"What're you waitin' for then," I challenged, not feeling half as quarrelsome as I was coming off. I had resigned myself to my fate, truly I had. I was not about to put up a commotion for something that would come to pass regardless of anything I may do. I did not want to _fight_ with the McCoys...But I would not stand to hear William insulted. I told Tolbert as such, warning him off speaking ill of my family if he had any honor left in his body. He looked fit to strike me, but pulled away, jaw set so tightly I thought he may crush his teeth. There was silence after that.

Any sympathy I might have won from the McCoys left as soon as I spit that water back in Calvin's face. He sat in the corner near the fire now, shooting me angry looks, but what had he expected me to do? I realized no one besides my pa knew that Will and I were to be wed, but Calvin considered the man to be my best friend and still thought I would not stand up for him. Well I was no McCoy. I did not turn on my kind.

Johnse had not attempted to speak to me after my hateful speech earlier and I wondered worriedly if we would be allowed a moment to say goodbye once the time came. I sincerely hoped so. He sat now, talking lowly with Calvin across the fire. I watched as his face went from interested, to confused, to despairing within the length of a small speech Calvin was giving. I was not privy to what passed between the men, but whatever it was had finally struck a sadness into my cousin's heart. I was bitter on the fact.

"One more hour to go," Tolbert said from his new spot leaning against the far wall of the cabin. He opened his pocket watch to us and though I should have been acknowledging the fact that in an hour I would be dead, all I could think of was how I had been awake for near around 20 hours now. I yawned, wondering if God would deem it wasteful to spend my last hour on earth sleeping.

I did not sleep however. Instead, I spent my last hour thinking. I thought of William. I recalled the Election Day when I was seven, when he claimed to have fallen in love with me. I remembered the first time he braided my hair, kissing the space between the plaits as he told me I was as good a Hatfield as anyone else. I remembered telling him of the fire he sparked in me and the first time he said he loved me. I remembered spending long, hot summer days swimming with him and Cotton down on my uncle's dock, surrounded by family I would never see again.

Cotton.

For as much as I loved and would miss William, tears immediately fell from my eyes as I thought of my twin. All bright eyes and pale hair, I suffered at the thought of never seeing him again. Sweet and innocent as he was, I wept wondering who would look after him in my absence. Who would make sure he was never in need of anything and always well cared for? I supposed my Pa would, but who would look after my Pa when the time came and Cotton was unable? I heaved an agonized sigh as my final hour drew to a close. Who would look after my family?

At Tolbert's declaration that the sun would soon be up, Johnse and I were marched outside, my hands being released from their tie now that I was under the aim of a pistol. Stepping out of the cabin, I blinked into the dim night, unable to see clearly after spending hours besides the fire. Tolbert nudged Johnse forward, grabbing me under the arm as he walked us the side, away from his brothers. I was shaking.

"Now I wanted to shoot you myself," Tolbert began somewhat shakily, addressing Johnse, as he was to die first. "But I have tp humor my brothers." I did not believe that for a moment and I did not think Johnse did either, even as he nodded. Tolbert withdrew his pistol, holding it up to Johnse with his free hand. "In a few minutes when the sun comes up…I'm gon' hand you this pistol…now, will you do the honorable thing...and shoot yourself?"

"Why in God's name would I do that?" Johnse sniffed, shrugging his shoulders carelessly. He had resigned himself to death as well, but he would not take his _own_ life.

"Shame and remorse," Tolbert replied seriously.

"Bullshit," Johnse spat catching my eye. We would not get the chance to say goodbye I knew. "You boys just wanna save yourself from doin' a murder," he called over Tolbert's shoulder. "And I ain't ashamed of lovin' Roseanna." As my cousin ended what would probably be his final spoken word, Tolbert looked conflicted. Adujusting his hold on me, he dragged me over to where his brother's stood, shooting Johnse a warning look not to try anything stupid.

"He will not die by his own hand," he mumbled to his brothers, looking at me agitatedly. I knew this whole business was starting to get to him. Jim and Pharmer shifted nervously, the later about to suggest something when Calvin stepped in.

"Then kill her first." I was shocked, whipping my head around to face the McCoy son. He would not meet my eye. "You're gonna have to do it anyhow," he reasoned as all of his brothers looked reluctant. "Kill her first so Johnse knows you're not playin'." I was disgusted.

With a slow, solemn nod, Tolbert told Calvin and Pharmer to hold Johnse back. The two rushed him, trapping him between them as Tolbert tossed me to the leafy ground. Johnse shouted in objection, realizing what was happening too late. He could not free himself of the McCoy boys to help me and as I rose up on my knees, I found myself staring down the barrel of Tolbert's pistol.

"Any last words?" he asked, hand shaking. He did not want to do this, but I knew he would. I met his eye steadily, not wanting to cower like an animal before meeting my maker.

"Cap Hatfield will kill you all," I swore slowly, raising my hands up near my head. A look of genuine fear crossed Tolbert face and he lowered the pistol slightly as he stared at me. I did not waver. Finally his face morphed into a scowl and he raised the pistol again, aiming it straight at my face as Johnse howled in protest.

"To hell with this-"

"Put the guns down!"

The shout came from the darkness of the woods and we all turned to it, me lowering back down to sit on my rear as Tolbert lowered his pistol. Squinting, I saw a line of mounts approaching, each one carrying an armed rider. My uncle Anderson walked in front of them, rifle aimed at Tolbert's heart.

"I said put the guns down," Devil Anse repeated, not wavering as he saw me sitting on the ground before Tolbert. Pharmer, Calvin, and Jim had all lowered their guns to the ground. Slowly but surely, Tolbert did the same, laying the pistol right beside me. I looked up at him and he met my eye steadily. Stepping forward, my uncle struck the young man with the butt of his riffle sending him crashing to the ground beside me. I scuttled away.

"Abi angel, get away from there." The voice was my uncle Jim who had a riffle trained on Jim. He motioned behind my father with his hat covered head. "Someone's waitin' for ya." Blinking, I turned where he had motioned and almost cried as I saw Will there, rifle aimed at Tolbert still on the ground and looking more furious than I had ever seen him. At my breathy gasp, he looked at me with his good eye and I could see his shoulders sag in relief.

With one final glance at Tolbert, I grabbed the lain down pistol and ran into the safety of my family where Johnse had already retreated. After three long days without seeing him and a grueling night believing I never would again, I _finally_ was able to throw myself into William's waiting arms.


	10. The Devil's Son

**This idea was actually suggested by a reviewer [**_ambermarie41_**] and I really had not thought of it for some reason, so let's see how it works out – this chapter will be from Cap's point of view. **

West Virginia, 1883

Three days. Three long days and Abigail had not returned to my Pa's home. Cotton came alone in her absence, but refused to say anything of his sister's whereabouts. The first day she had not come, I questioned my mama but, she told me to stop "pesterin'" Abi and simply find work to do while she was clearly away and busy.

I had become an ornery son of a bitch after that.

Even if Abigail had been around, she probably would have fled my presence in bad temper since I seemed to be snapping at everyone. My daddy had needed to pull me off Johnse two times the second day, so furious was I with my brother. He would come home in the early hours of the morning, still drunk and crying over his McCoy bitch. Lord, but I wanted to strike him with the butt of my riffle. It was a wonder the house was not torn down in Abi's absence.

The third day, I was more somber than anything, doing a lot of what Nancy described as "mopin' around the house". I guessed this was true enough, but damnit my days were long without Abi around. I did not notice until her extended absence how much of my day revolved around what she may be doing. It had been that way since my eye went milky and even before. Whether we were talking quietly on the porch, or I was reading to her down by the lake, we were almost always together. I would not speak it aloud even to Skunk Head, who was doing his best to keep me company, but I missed Abigail.

The fourth day, I was considering not even getting out of bed when my Uncle Jim stormed into the room like a hurricane. Apparently my Pa had ridden to him and told him I was down and he was there to take me hunting.

"Shootin' somethin' dead'll make ya feel better," he had claimed, bringing his bottle of shine to his lips. Looking at me, barely moving, he frowned. "Hey," he said, sitting down beside me. "Don't let it get ya down, nephew…they always come back."

I had regarded him, shocked, with my one good eye. I had not thought my reason for being gloomy had been so obvious, but apparently my papi knew me better than anyone. He knew I was on edge with Abigail not around and that if anyone could cheer me up, it would be my uncle Jim. I had gotten up and gotten dressed, if only to humor him.

"So what is it," Jim said, once we were far out into the forest, guns drawn and walking low to the ground, "That makes you so damn bull headed whenever your pretty little cousin ain't around?"

I wanted to warn him off calling her beautiful, but I knew Jim would shoot me soon as look at me for giving him sass, so instead I just shrugged. "I don't know if that's the reason I been down."

"Don't lie to me, boy," Jim spat, tobacco dripping into his beard as we continued up a hill. "Your daddy tells me you been a right pain in the ass since your cousin been gone, now tell me what it is about her that gets you this way." I kept my head dipped in shame as I shrugged.

"Just miss 'er is all," I claimed lowly, not wanting to come off like a lovesick fool like Johnse. Jim chuckled, a low rumble in his chest. We were walking side by side.

"You love 'er?" It was asked in his usual tone, but I could tell he meant it as a serious question. But still, I was too damn proud.

"I s'pose so." Jim grabbed me so suddenly, I did the worst thing a man could do and dropped my gun. He swung me around, throwing me to the ground before him and putting a boot to my chest. His dog was barking excitedly off to me right.

"Boy," Jim huffed, leaning all his weight onto the boot on my chest. I coughed and struggled. "You know I love you like a son…but I will shoot you dead you keep lyin' to me, now I'll ask again-" He aimed his riffle down at my chest. "You love that girl?"

"Yes, Uncle Jim!" I ground out, still trying to struggle out from under his foot. I was not a weak man, but Jim was a heavy bastard.

"She love you?" he went on curiously. I glared at him. He pressed down harder on my chest.

"Yes!" I yelped in pain, throwing my head back as he leaned a bit heavier onto me, looking thoughtful.

"Well then," he mused, finally lifting his foot and offering me a hand. "I _s'pose_ you better marry the girl."

"I intend to," I coughed, my pride thoroughly _stepped on_ as he helped me to my feet. He nodded, not looking at all apologetic for what he had done to me. I supposed I deserved it. I winced in pain, hand to my chest as I retrieved my gun from the ground.

"She'll come back," Jim said offhandedly, whistling for his dog to follow as he headed off in a different direction. I huffed disbelievingly, shaking my head as I scooped up my hat from the ground. Brushing it off, I smacked it onto my head, following after Jim with a pained scowl on my face.

We spent the rest of the day long hunting trip speaking about Abigail to my embarrassment. Jim told me how he had considered marrying her for a time. I nearly shot my uncle. I told him about how our plans to get my parents' consent had been put off by Johnse's foolhardiness with Roseanne McCoy.

"That boy is a damned fool," Jim had spit, laughing gruffly as I shot down a turkey at thirty yards.

We turned back towards my papi's when the sun had gone down, a turkey thrown over each of our shoulders and his dog carrying a rabbit between its teeth. I was in better spirit now, Jim having convinced me Abigail would return when the time was right. He suggested she was probably experiencing her flow and I had cringed, not wanting to think about it. As we cleared the tree line in front of my family's home, I saw my Uncle Ellison's cart pulled up in front of our porch.

"See?" Jim laughed, as I immediately felt my spirits lift and trotted on ahead of him towards the house. "I told you she'd come back!"

Any anger I had felt over the last few days left me at the idea of seeing Abigail again. Tossing my kill and riffle to the ground just outside the front door and stepped into the house, eyes flying everywhere in search of the girl with the corn silk hair. Instead I found my family, all looking concernedly at my Uncle Ellison who was leaned against our table, head hung low beside Cotton who looked like he had been crying for some time. I froze up.

"Oh, Cap, thank the Lord you're horm," my mother said, drawing everyone's attention to me. As my daddy's younger brother spotted me, hope lit up his face and I frowned at him.

"What's goin' on?"

"Cap," my uncle urged, disregarding my own question. His usually neat appearance was rumbled slightly and he had a slightly crazed look in his eye. "Is Abigail with you?" My initial fear was justified as I shook my head no and my uncle's head fell into his hands. Abigail was missing.

Uncle Ellison explained how Abi had left around noon time to come see me, but as the hours drew longer and she did not return, he began to worry until the sun went down and he had set out to come and retrieve her. The only problem was that, according to my mother and Nancy, she had never made it here and had therefore been missing for a significant number of hours before it was brought to our attention. She could be anywhere.

"We have to go look for her," I urged, as my uncle went to again comfort his near hysterical son. I felt for Cotton-Top. Abi treated him more like a son than a brother and with her not around, I did not know how he would cope. Hell, I did not know how I would cope.

"We wouldn't even know where to start," my father reasoned, pipe in hand as he paced worriedly, clearly deep in thought. My mother had gone to put the younger children to bed, Nancy included though she had protested greatly. "We need to send word to the rest of our kin to see if anyone may have seen her." I wanted to flip the table in outrage. That could take hours!

"And if they haven't?"

He was silent for a time.

"Then we pray harm has not befallen her."

At this I did stand angrily, shoving the table back and causing my mother to smack me over the head as she reentered the room. I was enraged. Whatever stupid son of a bitch dared to lay a hand on _my_ woman would not live to see daylight. I stormed onto the back porch as my uncles Jim and Ellison went to wake the rest of our kin and inquire as to Abigail's whereabouts.

I paced around the porch, chest heaving as I tried to take in enough air to keep from passing out. Abigail was missing. Abigail was missing. Abigail was missing. I squatted down for a moment, hand pressed over my eyes which were too damn close to watering for my liking. The back door opened behind me.

"I know it hurts bad, son," my father said lowly, much the way he had when I had injured my eye saving Abi and Cotton from that falling tree. "And I admire how you're standing up to it." I coughed to cover a sob. This pain I was faced with now was nothing like the pain I had been in that day, but I felt the outcomes would be similar. Losing Abi would be like losing an eye. I would not be complete.

"Daddy," I muttered shakily, straightening up but keeping my head low. "What if somethin's happened to her?" My father stepped to me, turning me by my shoulder and hugging me to his chest. I buried my face in his shoulder.

"We'll find her," he promised. "We'll find her and bring her home. And if she's hurt…we'll kill the son of a bitch responsible."

I nodded, clearing my throat as I pulled away. As a boy, I had always believed whatever my father told me, because he was a man to swear on his own on and not on God's. I admired that and now that I was a man, I still believed whatever he said. Looking up at him with my one good eye, I nodded, knowing we would get my cousin back come hell or high water.

Hours passed and our family came.

None of them had seen Abigail Mounts.

I was beside myself.

"We gotta find her," I ground out, passing the bit of space offered to me in the crowded home. Skunk Head watched me pace, riffle settled across his lap. He knew how I felt about Abi, having told him myself when I was just fourteen. He was already twenty-five at the time. He'd thought it strange, being sweet on a little girl, but had agreed she was 'perdy enough' and not teased me for it none as we both grew older. And he sat by me now, ready to kill anyone I said if they had hurt Abigail.

"We will, brother," he said, spitting. "Don't you worry.

"Mr. Hatfield!" Everyone paused at the distant cry. It was partially muffled on account of it was coming from outside where it had started to rain heavily some time ago, but we had all heard it. "Mr. Hatfield!"

"It's the McCoy bitch!" my Uncle Jim informed, peaking out the window. Everyone rose, guns handy until my father back us all away, telling us to shut up as he and my mother approached the front door with a lantern. We all listened in.

"Mr. Hatfield, my brothers got Johnse and Abigail." I would have stormed the porch if Uncle Jim had not caught me around the throat right before the threshold. He shushed me. "T-They're plannin' on killin' 'em at dawn." My blood ran cold. It was a little over two hours to dawn.

"Where are they?" my uncle asked quickly, relief flooding his tone as well as fear. Shamefully, none of us had questioned Johnse's whereabouts and it seemed he had been in trouble too.

"If I tell you that," the girl sobbed, "You gotta swear you won't hurt my brothers!"

"If my family lives, no harm will come to your brothers now _where are they_?"

"They got 'em down at my uncle Harmon's old place," she sniffled and I shoved Jim away from me, turning only to grab my rifle which Skunk Head threw to me. "Please, Mr. Hatfield, hurry!"

The young woman gasped as I stepped onto the porch, riffle in hand followed by the rest of my family, all armed and terrible. She stumbled back in fear as I fixed her a cold look with my milky eye. Skunk Head and Uncle Jim flanked me, with Jim spitty grossly into the mud.

"Let's ride!"

We set a grueling pace, crossing the Tug in record time and tearing through the forests of Kentucky like the devil himself. It was not fast enough for me. I spirred my mount to the point I feared it may flounder, but we continued until we reached the small cabin, my father telling us to hold back as he dismounted, rifle at the ready. I did the same along with Skunk Head who held two torches in hand. Down the hill a ways, the cabin door opened and Abigail was pushed out.

"Hold your ground, Cap," my father ordered, no doubt able to feel the rage rolling off my. I thought my head might explode as I watched that bastard Tolbert McCoy drag my cousin across the ground, away from Johnse who was stood up ready to die I suppose. We drew closer. Silently.

We got into hearing range just as Tolbert tossed Abi to the ground. Johnse was being restrained as she got to her knees in front of Tolbert's pistol. My heart was hammering so loud I was surprised the McCoys could not hear it as we drew right up on top of them.

"Any last words?"

"Cap Hatfield will kill you all," Abigail replied. I held myself back from a disbelieving laugh. My girl was brave. And smart too. She knew I would avenge her.

"To hell with this-"

"Put your guns down!" my papi yelled just as I was prepared to shoot that son of a bitch Tolbert myself. They all turned to us and I had to fight myself not to look at Abigail lest I lose focus. "I said put your guns down." The McCoys obliged, our kin hurrying forward to disarm them as my daddy struck Tolbert to the ground.

"Abi angel, get away from there," Uncle Jim ordered, riding up on the McCoy boys with his gun drawn. "Someone's waitin' for ya." I finally looked to my cousin as I heard her tiny cry and almost collapsed in relief. She was safe. Johnse passed me and I handed him his gun as Abi ran to me, throwing herself into my arms and crying softly. I crushed her to me, face buried in her hair and gun lowered to my side.

"I thought I'd never see you again," I breathed lowly, the words only meant to be heard by her. I began drawing her back towards my mount as my daddy urged the McCoys to their knees. Regretfully releasing Abi from my arms, I hoisted her into the saddle. She sagged tiredly. Blood was caked over her pretty face and I felt rage boil up inside me at the thought of one of those bastards laying a hand on her.

"I knew you'd come for me," she whispered, face lowered to be near mine. I could have cried.

"Are you deaf, McCoy?" I turned to see my father drawing a gun on James McCoy who had not taken to the ground with his brothers. "I said kneel."

"Don't hurt him, Uncle Anse," Abi called, voice horse. I cast her a confused look. These boys had kidnapped her and my brother and held them against their will.

"I kneel to no man," Jim said severely, not quavering under my papi's gun. "And I pray only to God…Not you."

There was silence.

"You're a brave man, Jim McCoy," my father observed, stowing his gun away once more. "Your daddy should be proud." He stepped away from the brothers, nodding to Skunk Head who in turn waved me over. "Burn in."

Taking one of the torches, I followed besides Skunk Head and began setting fire to the small cabin. I smiled maliciously feeling some of my rage relieved as I broke in one of the windows and tossed the torch inside to set the whole thing ablaze. As I passed the McCoy, I spit at them, glare feeling like it was never leave me again as I returned to my horse. Abi was slumped over in the saddle looking boneless and I was afraid she may have passed out.

"Ride behind me, Will," she murmured as I rested a hand on her thigh. "I fear I might fall off." I nodded gravely, swinging up behind her and taking the reins into my hands. She leaned back against me and I landed a kiss on her slender shoulder.

"I'll get you home soon, Abi," I promised, urging us into a gallop to match the other Hatfields as we fled the burning cabin and the McCoy boys. I was angry we had left them alive, but my first priority was getting Abigail back to West Virginia. Even though the riding was rough, I knew she had fallen asleep before we even reached the Tug. I spurred my mount on faster.

We rode straight through sunrise, reaching the cabin at around the time we would usually be rising to begin chores. Nancy spotted us from her seat on the porch and rushed inside to tell mama. Our kin dropped farewells and best wishes to us before continuing on to return to their own homes, promising to come back to check in on Abigail when they had the time. Uncle Jim stayed. The girl had not woken as we drew to a stop outside the house. The front door opened and my Uncle Ellison came rushing out, not having ridden with us since he had to stay and keep Cotton calm.

"Give 'er to me, Cap," he urged, reaching up for Abi. I was reluctant and ready to say so, but my father cast me a warning looking and I begrudgingly passed my future wife into her father's arms. "Thank you, my boy." I felt better at this, seeing how happy he was to have her back, tears of joy in his eyes. I knew the feeling.

As we all retired into the house, my uncle carrying Abi into the girls room to rest, I noticed Roseanna McCoy was sat at our kitchen table, dry and looking concernedly at Johnse who near fell over when he saw her.

"Roseanna?"

"Why is she still here?" I growled, turning to my mama who just shook her head at me. Johnse was confused. Roseanna explained how her little brother, Bud, had ridden to her aunt's home to warn her about their brothers' plan. She had ridden to us and in doing so saved Johnse and Abigail's lives. I still could not stand the sight of her though.

"Well I was ridin' to your aunt's to get you when they caught me," Johnse admitted, drawing everyone's shocked gaze. Including Roseanna. "Yeah," he continued. "I was goin' to get you and saw Abi ridin' on her way here to see you, Will." I perked up at this, moving from my spot leaning against the window. "I told her you wouldn't be home and invited her to come with me."

I finally snapped and lunged at my brother, swinging him around by the collar and throwing him to the ground. He jumped to his feet, shouting in indignation as I went to back hand him. "You almost got Abigail killed!"

"It wasn't my fault!" He ducked away from me. I pushed him back by his shoulders.

"You were a damn fool to go riding into the McCoys with Abigail in toe."

"Well if she hadn't been ridin' to see you it wouldn't have happened!"

"Hey!" my father yelled at Johnse as Uncle Jim had to physically hold me back from throttling him. "Don't you speak about your brother or cousin like that, Johnse, you put 'em both through hell with your foolishness." I shrugged my uncle's hold off, glaring at my big brother as he gave me a chagrined look.

"Cap, I-"

I spit at his boots, not wanting to hear any more from him as I stormed from the kitchen and into my cousins' room. For all my anger, I shut the door gently, not wanting to disturb Abi who was lain across the bed, looking peaceful under the watch of her brother and father.

"Hey, Cap," Cotton whispered, hand extended to stroke his sisters hair lovingly. Her father had washed her face. I nodded to Cotton, removing my hat as I took a seat on the bed beside my uncle.

"She wake up at all?" I questioned my uncle, staring hard at her face with my good eye. She looked unharmed besides a small cut in the middle of her lip which was slightly swollen. An angry fire raged inside me at the sight of it but I kept it down.

"Not a bit," he replied, wringing a blood stained rag between his hands. "None a that blood on her face was hers, thank the Lord." I nodded. I suddenly felt worn out and rubbed a hand over my face roughly. I needed to shave. "Cap?" I turned to my uncle, but his eyes were on his daughter. "You love Abigail?"

"Yes," I said immediately, not about to fool around with pride after almost losing her. He nodded, shooting a smile at Cotton who watched on innocently, still stroking his sister's hair.

"Then marry her."

"I intend-"

"No," he said, turning to look at me, elbow resting on his knee. I shifted. "I don't mean marry her when the time is right or when your mother says so." My brow furrowed in confusion. "I mean marry her as soon as possible – before this here feud kills one of you…or both of you." I sat up straighter, head tilted so that I could look at my uncle with my good eye.

"I won't let Abi be hurt, Uncle Ellison," I swore seriously. He nodded slowly, reaching out to clap a hand on my shoulder.

"I know that, son," he said lowly. "But it ain't her I'm worried about." With that, he took to his feet and calling Cotton to his side, left the room. I watched him go, not sure how I felt about what he had just said. He thought I would die in this feud and soon to by the sounds of it. I did not know how I felt about that.

I turned around to face Abigail, scooting higher up on the bed. Reaching over, I took her hand in mine and began stroking the back of her knuckles. She sighed in sleep but did not stir otherwise. I considered what her father had said and realized I did not want to die. I hated all McCoys right down to the ground, especially after tonight, but I did not want to die and leave Abi just to fight with them.

I knew this was a conflict that could not be solved overnight and swore myself to choosing when the time came. But I would not just sit back and be contemplative while I figured it out. I would follow my uncle's advice and marry Abigail as soon as possible.


	11. Do You Love Me?

West Virginia, 1883

"William, I am tired," I groaned in exhaustion, my back sore as we trekked uphill, my cousin far out in front of me. I had woken this morning, much like other mornings, aching and bruised from Tolbert's rough treatment many nights prior inside the small cabin in the woods of Kentucky. Dark, hand sized marks were littered up and down my arms, and my side was discolored from being tossed to the ground one time too many. "May we please go back?"

My love did not answer, as he had not this entire journey. I would grow frustrated and call him heartless if not for the fact that he would often look back to check on me as well as stop to allow me to catch him up. All these reasons, plus the fact I loved him dearly kept me walking, though very slowly, behind him. He had come to my father's home with the sun today, riffle over shoulder and rushed me to dress. After informing me to also grab my gun, he had ridden me way out into the forest, silent as death as the sun rose higher the further we rode.

And now we walked in silence, both toting our guns along with us. I knew something was troubling him and that whatever it was, he would need time to sort it out in his head before he voiced it. That was just how William was. He did not do or say things carelessly and without thought. It was not so much that he wished to spare others' feelings, more around the likes of he did not want to waste breath on something he was not adamant about. He reminded me of my father in this way and I chose to show him the same respect I showed the man who had raised me and not rush his thought process.

He stopped at the peak of the hill, squinting out into something I was not yet high enough to see. I prayed he had truly stopped and was not simply waiting for me, because I was not sure how much further I could walk before I would feel compelled to ask for his assistance or something of the like. With a great huff of breath and hair stuck to my forehead, I finally came to stand beside him and looked down the other side of the hill into an area that looked familiar to me.

"This is where you had your accident," I breathed thoughtfully, surprised I remembered the place. I had refused to go anywhere near my uncles many timber yards after that day. When my father had suggested Cotton beginning to work in them as well, I had had a hysterical sort of fit with my throat and eyes eventually ending up sore from crying. It had done nothing.

"It wasn't no accident," Will finally spoke, spitting into the dirt in front of us as I turned to him. "I lost the use of my eye to save you."

I nodded solemnly, the usual sense of guilt settling over my heart as I recalled the incident. I had never, _never_ forgiven myself for what had happened to William that day. Every time I looked into his milky eye, I saw the bloody mess it had been after he pushed me and Cotton out of the way of that falling tree. It was true, most of my dreams were of my cousin coming to save me from horrible fates only the devil could think of, but every once and a while, a nightmare came along where William would curse me for losing his eye. I had never told anyone of these dreams, but I woke up crying each and every time they surfaced. I could never forgive myself.

"William, I am…so sorry," I said slowly, eyes pricking as I looked up into his face. He nodded solemnly, not lifting his gaze from the space below us. It looked different than it had all those years ago, my uncles luck in timber having expanded. Five thousand acres. This, once just a grassy hill before a road, now lead down into one of the main yards, lumbering equipment and carts scattered about and overhanging built as shelter from the sun set up. It looked different, but then time changes all things.

"I don't regret it," my cousin insured, finally gracing me with his gaze. I sniffled, head falling as I nodded despite the fact that I did not believe him fully. My tears were fat and salty on my face as he stuck a hand under my chin. "Abi…I'd do it again."

"No," I said, reaching up to hold his wrist between my hands. "No, don't say that-"

"I would," he insisted vehemently, face looking severe as he shifted his weight so that it was almost as if he were curving into me. "I would risk anythin' to keep you safe." I blinked, not sure where he was going with this. His expression softened as he kissed the furrow upon my brow. Pulling away, fingers still pushing my chin up to look at him, he spared me a small but beautiful smile. "Marry me."

I laughed in endeared confusion as I rolled my eyes at him, moving one hand to stroke his beneath my face. "I plan to, you silly man." He shook his head.

"I mean today," he explained lowly. My heart skipped a beat, I was sure. "Right now."

I narrowed my eyes at him before pulling my chin out of his grasp. My lips parted in shock as I took a step back from him. He stared after me, face looking completely blank. I took another step back, mouth working like a fish as I tried to come to terms with what he had just suggested. Married? Today? At this very minute? A disbelieving laugh fell from my lips as I shook my head at him in good humor.

"That's insane," I huffed, feeling short of breath as I rested my hands on my hips. I made sure to keep my riffle pointed into the dirt. "We don't even-"

"Our fathers consent." I nodded slowly, face turned into a thoughtful frown. Will had told me of how his father had somehow been aware of the fact that Will had suffered at my kidnapping. "We're both of age-"

"We haven't planned anythin', William!" I threw my arms up, riffle shaking haphazardly as I turned my back on him and walking away a bit.

"We could go down and have Uncle Wall marry us _right now_ with no plannin' needed!" I chewed on my lip nervously, not knowing what this twisting feeling in my gut was. I wanted to marry William, truly I did, but I had not expected for him to spring this proposal on me in such a way.

"Be that as it may-"

"Do you love me?" I spun on him, hand poised at the back of my neck nervously. Lord, but I wanted to strike him with the butt of my riffle. I had never lifted a hand to William, let alone an armed one, but at the ridiculous question I could have laid him right there in the dirt. He seemed to see this in my eye as he leaned away from me slightly. He did not, however, retract the question. I glared halfheartedly at him.

"You know I do."

He nodded silently as I continued to pace.

"Then marry me"

I stopped my pacing and fixed him with a steady gaze. I had never been one to imagine the glory of my wedding day as I imagined many girls my age and younger did. I had no 'dream wedding' to live out. I was not protesting because I wanted to be dressed to the nines in a new black dress instead of a green skirt and white blouse. I was not suffering the absence of a wedding party where we would be gifted with the necessities needed to survive the first year of marriage. I would not miss writing out a long list of invitations to be sent to the far corners of West Virginia calling forth the Hatfield clan to celebrate the event. I was not reluctant to follow through for any of these reasons. I was reluctant because…

"I'm scared," I said lowly, casting my light blue eyes to the ground in shame. I heard rather than saw Will approach and huffed tiredly as he wrapped me into his arms, riffle through his belt.

"Hey," he soothed, pressing a kiss to my hair. I squeezed my eyes shut. "I'm here ain't I?" I nodded into his chest. "Then you got nothin' to be scared of." He pulled away so that he might squat and look up into my eyes. I sighed, stroking lovingly at his cheek as I stared into his mismatched eyes. Lord, but I loved this man.

"Okay," I whispered, "Let's get married."

He picked me up so suddenly that I could not help but shriek. It quickly turned into a laugh however as he spun me around, my skirt fanning out around us. When he finally set me down, he grabbed my hand free hand in his and yanked us back the way we had come, leaving the scene of his accident behind us. I laughed nervously, nearly tripping as he ran us down the hill. I was weight down by my riffle which I now had to question the use for.

"Why'd we have to bring our guns if you were gonna prupose marriage?" I wheezed as we reached the place where we had tied the horse in about half the time the original trek had taken. I was winded.

"You'll see," Will promised, taking the weapon from me now to load into the saddle bag. He looked manic. As he grabbed me round the waist to hoist me into the saddle, I settled my hands on his arms to tell him to wait.

"Will," I huffed, still not having caught my breath. "We're gon' go into town right now without anyone but Uncle Wall there." He looked about to interrupt but I placed a hand over his mouth. "I don't have a problem with that," I said truthfully. I would mourn the absence of my daddy and Cotton on the most important day of my life, but I would live through the disappointment. "But I don't want the first time we kiss as a couple to be in front of our daddies' big brother…"

He froze as he took into account what I was saying. It had taken me a great deal of courage to say it, and my cheeks were hot even now as my two cyan eyes locked with his one taupe eye. His mouth had parted slightly and as I reached up to push it closed, he stepped further into me. I shivered, feeling as if I was as good as naked as he gazed deeply into my eyes. He leaned towards me, breath tickling across my lips as I melted into his arms slightly. He held me fast, bringing his face down to mine and pressing his lips against mine.

To say kissing William while he was conscious was different from when he was heavily sedated would be an understatement. I was not sure if I could even call the peck I had landed on him a kiss anymore as the man was about to marry crushed me to his body. I gasped, pulling away slightly only to be yanked by in by Will's hand on the back of my head. A fire shot through my body and I reached my arms up to encircle his neck as he leaned down into the kiss. We parted briefly to breath before diving in once more, the force of his grazes causing me to step back and pull him with me every time our lips reconnected. He would have kissed me straight into the ground and I would have allowed it had we not eventually backed up into his mount which whinnied in indignation.

He pulled away from me suddenly, leaving me a panting blob in his arms, my face hot and my lips feeling swollen. He glanced at the horse before turning back to me. I looked up at him, eyes wide and hazy as he leaned down to press a far more innocent kiss to my forehead. I heaved a sigh of relief. Had we started again, I'm not sure if we would have ever made it into town.

The ride to the prison where our Uncle Wall worked was silent. I hugged William tightly around the waist, head buried between his shoulder blades as we approached. I was about to become a Hatfield. Something I had dreamed of being since I was able to understand what people meant when they called my brother and I bastards in the street. I could have cried from happiness, but as we rode up outside of the jail and I saw my daddy, brother, and Uncle Anse sitting outside playing a game of checkers, I could only give a confused looked to William who was wearing one of his trademark devilish smirks.

"It's about time you got here," my uncle said as way of greeting as we reared to a stop. "I was ready to bet your daddy that you had turned him down."

"No," I sputtered, casting a shocked look between my family members as William stepped down from the saddle. He greeted everyone with large hugs and then turned back to me, hand extended to help me down. I crossed my arms in annoyance. "What's goin' on here?"

"Abi, you're gettin' married!" I turned away from Will to look up on the porch from where my brother had called from. He stood next to my father, both having abandoned the checkers board, dressed in his Sunday best and smiling infectiously at me. My daddy stood on, also suited up with a hat and all as he smiled proudly at me and motioning towards a still waiting William with a tilt of his head.

He had brought my family here for me.

With a watery laugh, I reached down to my husband-to-be and slid easily into his arms. He gave me a loving squeeze before setting me down and taking my hand. We walked by my Uncle Anse who nodded at me, pipe for once not making the smile he sent me crooked. We walked by my brother who leaned forward to hug Will and myself. I sobbed happily into his shoulder before pulling we reached my father just before the threshold. He looked proud and I felt myself glowing in his gaze as he shook his nephews hand and placed a warm kiss on my cheek.

"I love you, angel."

"I love you too," I replied, voice cracking with emotion as I pulled away. Smiling in his usual excited way, he waved us through the door, promising to be here when we were through. I nodded, stepping into the jail with Will still gripping my hand.

"It's about time you two got in here," my Uncle Wall greeted merrily, stepping forward to clap William on the back and hug me warmly. "Don't cry there, little lady. It's your weddin' day." I laughed. "Alright lets get this over with – we've all waited long enough."

I could not have agreed more as I stood before the curiously on looking prisoners and Cotton who my father had advised to sit silently in the corner of the room. Uncle Wall walked us through the vows, having to eventually hand me his kerchief out of his pocket as I could not seem to stop crying. William landed an affectionate kiss to my hair as I mopped at my eyes. I was just so happy.

"By the power vested in me by the state of Kentucky, I now pronounce you man and wife." He smiled fondly at us and we shared an awkward sort of chuckle before he bent down to kiss me. It was short and innocent, reminiscent of the one I had given him when I was thirteen that he still was unaware of. I smiled as he pulled away, laughing as Cotton finally burst, jumping up and down as he clapped happily.

I walked over to my brother, leaving William to sign the marriage license first as I pulled my twin into a hug. He crushed me unintentionally to his breast and I reveled in it, knowing I was going to miss receiving these before bed every night. I would miss my brother even though I was see him nearly as often as I did now, but I was married now and my devotion must lie with William. Still, I paused my Uncle Wall where he was about to sign as our witness, asking if Cotton may be listed instead.

I stood behind my brother, guiding his hand to spell out his name since he was not literate like myself or William who watched on silently. It felt like when we were children and I would help Cotton with any and everything. He was not nearly so dependent now and it brought me joy and sadness all at once. When 'Ellison Mounts' was sloppily scrawled on the designated line, I signed my own name and that was it. We were married.

"Congratulations to you both," my uncle nodded. We bid him good day, stepping back outside to our fathers waiting arms. Once hugs were passed around, my father passed William his rifle and my uncle gave me mind. I frowned, having forgotten we had brought them. I asked William if he would finally tell me what we had them for. He smiled fondly at me, nodding to the edge of the jail's porch. I noticed a man there setting up some odd contraption that was held on three thin legs. A curtain hung from the back of it which his head was shoved under.

"What in the world…?"

"It's a new invention," my pa informed, ushering Will and myself forward. A lone chair was placed in front of the device and the man, having come out from under the curtain, motioned Will to sit in it. I frowned. "It puts you on paper just like printed word."

"You're hornswoggling me," I gaped as the man came forward, taking me by the elbow, and guided me to Williams left side. He smiled up at me. I returned the look.

"Not at all," the man sniffed, not sounding from around these parts as he prepared to go back under the curtain. Such a strange device. "Now please, both of you, hold up your guns." We did so; me holding mine across my middle while Will's was leaned against his knee, aiming into the overhang. "Now do not smile."

I quirked a brow at this, glancing at William and getting reprimanded for it. Apparently we were not supposed to move either. But how could I not smile? This was the happiest day of my life! Just thinking that I was now a Hatfield made a smile burst through on my face. The man behind the contraption was not amused. He waited patiently for me to control myself before ducking down again. The motion in itself was humor to me and my chest shook as a laugh fought to burst out of me. When his arm came up from nowhere holding a strange tree branch looking object I could not help myself. There was painfully bright burst of light just as I let out a laugh.

I gasped, jumping slightly as smoke rose up into the air, barely noticing as the man seemed to have a tiny fit, trying to reprimand me only to be stopped by Will who fixed him with a glare from his milky eye. He left shortly after, packing up his strange machine and saying he would deliver our "photograph" to the jail when it was ready. I had no idea what that meant but did not care as Will pulled me to his side. I looked up at him, smiling brightly. We were married.

We stayed to talk with our kin for a time but after none too long, our daddies were urging us to leave. I was suspicious of this since we would have no choice but to return to one of their homes. Why were they rushing us? Still we dropped our farewells and rode away, me clinging to William as he had set a rather grueling pace. It didn't take long after we entered the forest for me to see we were headed in the direction of William's home. I groaned internally at the thought of facing my Aunt Lavicy. I could not imagine her approving of this union. Perhaps she was not even aware of it.

I needn't have worried however. As we cleared the trees in front of my uncle's home we did not slow in the least. Nancy and her sisters were seated on the front porch and when they saw us approaching, each jumped up and waved enthusiastically. I laughed, waving back. We passed them though, and I heard them shout kind sendoffs in our wake. We passed through the back yard and barn area never slowing our pace. I questioned my husband as to our destination but he simply told me it was a surprise.

We ran into the forest behind the Hatfield property, carrying further up into the hills. We passed the lake and Jonse's drip mill and cabin and simply kept going. We rode in silence for an hour until we turned onto a path I had not known before. The ground was stripped clean and trodden on as we neared our destination far_, far_ into the hills. Our poor mount was sweating.

"We're here," Will panted as we finally began to slow to a light trot. I peared around his shoulder, not seeing anything until we rounded the corner of the hill we were currently riding parallel to. I gasped as I took in the cleverly placed cabin. It seemed to be built right into the rock of the earth. It looked to not have been inhabited for some years, but it was not at all desolate or decaying.

"What is this?" I breathed as we finally came to a complete halt. I leaned back as William dismounted, smiling up at my confused face proudly.

"This is our home," he stated matter-of-factly, turning to it. My breath hitched as I looked back at the moderately sized cabin. I did not know the Hatfield history well enough to know who this had belonged to beforehand but it was ours now and that was what made tears spring to my eyes for the hundredth time that day. Turning to me, Will grabbed be round the waist, dragging me from the saddle to stand beside him. "Do you like it?"

"It's perfect," I breathed shakily, putting my cheek to his chest. "Thank you so much."

That was to be one of the last things I said that night. Will took me on a quick tour of the cabin. It was spacious and well kept even after all these years. I found that it was considered a sort of hunting lodge for his father in years passed, but he rarely traveled to it now which was why we would be moving all our belongs, and soon to be delivered wedding gifts, into it first thing the next morning.

But first came the wedding night.

I was terrified once we found ourselves in the bedroom, the whole cabin having been shown and found worthy of living. I had fidgeted, not knowing exactly what to do with my hands until William came to me and eased me gently to the bed. We were slow with each other as it turned out this would be both of our first times. I would be lying if I said I was not slightly surprised. His feathery light touches across my bare skin left me flushed from head to toe, my tint only growing darker as I saw him naked for the first time.

There was the pain, yes, but it was brief and Will was quick to kiss the tears from my eyes, still being very gentle with me even when it had eased. We made love long into the night, becoming familiar with each other's bodies in ways I had only ever dreamed of. When all was said and done and we lay in a worn out silence, I raised my head to press a kiss to his bare chest. He hummed in content and I knew I would never need another in my life. William was all I would ever need.


	12. All Good Things

West Virginia, 1884  
Election Day

I would find that marriage suited me right down to the ground in the ten months following mine and Williams impromptu union. We moved our belongings from our respective houses into the home we now shared with the help of our kin and Skunk Head. It had been tiresome work, but when it was done I had never felt so at home anywhere else as I did in that cabin I shared with my husband.

Husband.

Even after a little under a year, it still felt exciting and new to refer to Will as such. We made our home as comfortable as possible and always opened it to our family. Cotton staid with us more nights than not and I felt I was even happier with my brother close by. He helped Will with the horses and traveled with him every morning down to the lumber yard. I slowly but surely got over my fear of him working there and now he was a frequent, helping our uncle in his business and essentially living his own life. It was rewarding to see him so happy and to have him in our home.

For all the smiles and laughter and gifts we stalked our home with, my favorite part sat on the overhanging of our fire place. It was the 'photograph' of William and myself on our wedding day. It was the most amazing thing I had ever seen and the way it was produced was still a mystery to me. Uncle wall had come with it a few days later and given us a handsome stand to rest it on. In the photograph, the laugh that had bubbled out of me had been captured, showing my face with my eyes closed and mouth open. William, instead of looking straight forward was looking up at me with a fond expression. His eyebrow was raised and his mouth tilted in an amused smirk as I laughed at the man beneath the curtain. We both held our riffles in hand. It was like our relationship defined in a solitary moment.

I liked to believe I was a good wife. I kept our home nice and clean, cooked breakfast and dinner every day, and performed my wifely duties more than willingly. We were happy together in this life, and the only thing that could have made our lives better would be children. But as I stared blankly now at our bloodied sheets in the washbasin, I feared this was not a wish God would see fit to grant. I tried not to be bitter on the matter.

"Abi?" I jumped, shoving the sheet under the water as I turned to William. He was staring at me oddly from the front door, and I realized he must have been calling after me for a while. I sniffed turning away, eyes cast so low they might have been closed.

"Sorry, I was somewhere else," I mumbled, wiping my cheek on my shoulder tersely. He came further into our kitchen area and I tried to smile at him, but it was forced and he could tell. He knew me better than anyone in this world. Coming up by my elbow, he glanced down into the murky water.

"Your flow came again." It was not a question. I sniffled, yanking my hands from the water to wipe them agitatedly on my apron.

"Your brother and Roseanna were livin' in sin and God saw fit to grant them a child," I said, voice thick as I leaned my hands against the edges of the basin, "Though, Lord help them, I hear she has been sickly."

It was true. After being returned from the hands of death by Roseanna, Johnse could still not bring himself to part with his family and marry the girl even after he had made such a fuss over her carrying his baby. She had left, heartbroken, and returned to her aunt's home where seven months later she had birthed a baby girl. Rumor had it that her name was Elizabeth or something of the like. But Roseanna had been sickly after Johnse's betrayal and her daughter was born as such. It was likely both would parish sooner rather than later.

I prayed not, but it was likely.

William pulled me into his chest as tears sprung to my eyes. "I just want a baby so bad," I whispered sadly, hiding my face in his chest as he shushed me gently.

"It'll happen," he promised, pressing a kiss to my curls. "You have to be patient." I huffed, fighting down the annoyance I wanted to speak upon. He was right, of course. All good things to those who wait. I felt awful to even think it, but I would rather have no baby than one as sickly as Johnse's daughter. We had waited and would continue to wait until we were blessed with a child of our own. I prayed every night that it would be a healthy one. "Now come on, we don't wanna keep everyone waitin'."

I nodded, leaving the sheets to soak until we returned. It was Election Day and we were all set to ride into Kentucky to celebrate with our family. It would be the first time I had wondered into the territory since the McCoy boys had taken Johnse and me by force. I did not like to think about it. Every few weeks I would have nightmares about that night, only William would not show up in time and Tolbert McCoy would shoot my cousin and I dead in cold blood. I would wake up screaming.

I wiped the memories from my mind, having promised Will I was alright to go the night before when another nightmare had plagued me. I had told him I could not turn yellow and cower here in West Virginia for the rest of my days. If I did that, then the McCoys would have bested me, and after that night I was not willing to let such a thing pass. I would go and that was the end of it.

We packed the carriage, a gift from our Uncle Lias a week prior to our wedding, and headed out to West Virginia earlier than years prior since we had a further way to go. I did not mind the location of our cabin, but some days, like today, I wished we still lived down in the valley areas nearer to our kin. Even William had complained once that he could not go hunting with Skunk Head and Jim as often since the two dreaded making the three hour ride to us. It was my belief that in a few years, perhaps when a baby finally came along, we would move.

We reached the Kentucky election grounds at around midday to find out we were the last Hatfields to arrive. Our family was spread out everywhere, some waving to us as we arrived and others not noticing since they were involved in one activity or the other. I left William's side to greet my brother and daddy who were situated near the dance tent, Cotton watching girls twirl about in interest. William went to find Jim, wherever the scoundrel may be.

"Abigail!" I turned and smiled as I saw my cousin Nancy hurrying toward me, her sisters following close behind. "You're a sight for sore eyes," she enthused, opening her arms to hug me once she was in range. I held her close to my chest, smiling brightly. Though our family still spent a great deal of time together, I did not see Nancy half as much as I saw Cotton. She was fifteen now and I feared our time together before she was married off was limited. "How are you?"

"Fine," I laughed, pulling away to greet Mary and Elizabeth, now eleven and nine respectively. They could have been twins for how similar they looked and I admired how they stuck together, hands clasped as they walked away from us. "My, but they're shootin' up like weeds."

"Pains in my ass, both of them," Nancy scoffed, looping her arm through mine and ignoring my disapproving look as we began to stroll around the festivities. "So how is married life?"

"Wonderful," I gushed honestly, looking up to spot Will speaking animatedly with Jim around twenty yards across the way. As if feeling my eyes on him, he turned to me and smiled. I felt like I was glowing. "I never been so happy before." Nancy nodded.

"Are you and my brother gon' have babies soon?" This was a common question, and I was used to it, but an ache still sprung to my chest as I remembered the bloody sheet drowned in water back home. Nancy noted my crest fallen countenance and frowned. "What's the matter?"

I shrugged, squinting in the bright sunlight as I avoided my young cousin's gaze. "We been tryin' to have babies, but…it hasn't worked."

"Yet," Nancy stated firmly, gripping my forearm in her spidery fingers. "It hasn't worked _yet_. You gotta keep faith," she informed as we circled the fair. I nodded my agreement even though on the inside I felt hopelessness begin to creep between my ribs. How long would I be waiting? We walked around exchanging pleasantries for a while. Nancy, pretty young thing that she was, had a suitor by the name of Charlie Mullens.

"I am not too partial to him though," she confessed, "For some months now I have had my eye on John Vance."

"He's another nephew a Jim's isn't he?" I asked curiously as we reached a group of men gathered not far from the carts, drinking and looking at a plank that was set up around ten yards in front of them.

"Great nephew," Nancy corrected as I drew us to a stop. "He's just a bit younger than Johnse and Will." I nodded, listening but attention held by the men before us. I believed they were having a shooting competition and as they laid a branch down to set the mark, a smile burst onto my face. "What's got you lookin' all sunny?"

"Wait here," I urged my cousin, picking up my skirt so that I might run over to where we had left our cart. Climbing into the back, I grabbed my riffle and hurried back. As soon as Nancy saw what I carried, her eyes widened in a scandalized gaze.

"You cannot be serious," she whispered firmly as I checked my barrel.

"I'm gonna shoot," I stated proudly making my way forward.

"Abi, they won't let you."

"They won't have a choice." Two McCoy men had already shot, one of them getting within the circle placed round the nail that signified the center of the target. I squeezed my way between them. "Can I have a go?" They all turned to me, shocked, before falling into hysterical fits of laughter. I did not budge.

"Little lady," a round man in a bowler had chuckled, stepping up to me, "This here's a shootin' contest."

"Which is why I have my gun," I explained slowly as if he were a child. One of the men, still laughing rather loudly, staggered forward, leaning against the man's shoulder. Jefferson McCoy. Lord, but he had become a drunk. I scrunched my nose up.

"Aw let her shoot," he hiccupped, eyeing me openly as he stood back near his kin. I spotted Calvin with them and tried not to glare too heatedly. "She probably don't know how to hold the gun no how."

I frowned at him, shoving passed to stand at the front of the group. I politely asked all the men to step back as I toed the line and hoisted my rifle up to take aim. The target was not far and I just had to do better than the last man to shoot. I breathed deeply, easily keeping both eyes open as I pulled the trigger. The shot rang out, the kick yanking my shoulder back in a familiar way and I smiled as the bullet splintered the wood...right between the nail and the Sam McCoy's bullet hole.

There was silence until-

"Woohoo!" Nancy cheered, jumping up and down as she came to stand beside me. "Some shot, Abi!" I smiled demurely, lowering my riffle and turning to look at the crowd of shocked men behind me. I squinted, searching each face before I found the mediator.

"I'll take my prize now," I said cooly.

"Where'd you learn to shoot like that?" Calvin McCoy asked, clearly enraged as he stepped forward. I shrugged nonchalantly.

"My husband taught me." it was true. Every Sunday after church, Will would take me up into the hills and teach me how to shoot like a man. After ten months I was pretty good, if God did not think me proud for saying so. I was not as good as Will, however, since he had a natural born talent for the activity, and I was only learning. I spared Calvin one last condescending smirk before turning back to the mediator who was scratching his head thoughtfully. "My prize please."

"Well I-"

"Tell 'er she can't have it!" I turned to frown at Paris McCoy.

"Yeah, women can't shoot here!" Jefferson joined in, flanking his cousins with a face like thunder.

"She won fair and square," Nancy declared, taking to my side. I touched her shoulder to calm her as I turned my glare on the man running the contest once more. He did not look willing to stand up against the angry family men.

"Well we've never had a woman shoot so-"

"So there is a first time for everythin'," I snapped, growing irritated. Moving quickly, Clavin stepped forward and yanked my riffle roughly from my hands. I turned to him, fuming. "Give it back!" I barked.

"Women shouldn't be shootin'," Calvin said slowly, holding my gun across his chest as he glared at me. Lord, but I wished I had some water to spit in his face right now. I went to make a snatch for my gun and he looked ready to shove me.

"Don't you touch her," Nancy hissed, "I'll run and get my brother and he'll shoot you dead."

"Go and get that freak," Calvin challenged, sneering at the young girl before looking back at me, "He can't do nothin'."

"Funny," I scoffed as I heard the dirt shift beside me letting me know Nancy had run off, "Since the last time I saw you, you and your brothers were on your _knees_ in front of Cap and our family."

"Shut your trap!" Calvin shouted in my face, eyes zooming to his surrounding kin who had formed a semi-circle around us. I smirked.

"Gimme my gun," I growled lowly, hands clenched in fists of rage as he looked down into my eyes again.

"You don't deserve it," he breathed menacingly as he stepped into my personal space.

"Boy." We all turned, the men parting to show Will, Nancy, and our Uncle Jim who was chewing loudly at some tobacco. "I wouldn't talk to my little niece like that; her husband might just see fit to put a bullet in your brain."

Will came forward, glaring at Calvin who quickly stepped away from me, throwing my riffle to the ground at my feet. I scoffed, scooping down to pick it up and turning to Will. He leaned over me, shooting warning glares at all gathered before looking down at me. His expression softened and he gave me a curious look, asking if I was okay. I nodded. Looking satisfied, he spit into the grass and turned to the men.

"This competition still open?" he asked, taking a swig of the large pint of whiskey he had carried over from where he and Jim had probably been set up at the barrel. The men shifted.

"Long as you don't mind wastin' a bullet," Paris grunted, not meeting Willaim's mismatched eyes as he passed the glass to me.

"I ain't wasted one yet," he jeered before turning to me. He smiled, leaning down to plant a sensual kiss on my lips before stepping up to the line. Looking over, I saw Calvin fuming silently and had to smirk at my husband's back. He loved getting under the McCoys' skin. Nancy and Jim came to stand beside me.

"Hey, hey," Paris interrupted before William could fire. Pointing down, he told my husband to toe the line which his shoe was slightly over. "You're over the damn mark." Jim stepped up to Will's shoulder as I glared at the sniggering McCoy bunch.

"Just do what you do, son," he coached before stepping away from his nephew's arm.

"What he does is miss," Paris' brother Sam heckled as Will lifted his rifle. Their laughter was shattered just as quickly as the lantern hanging on the pole next to the target as he fired.

"Ah, Cap," Calvin teased. "You missed _completely_." The McCoys fell into laughter as my family all gathered behind Will, each of us staring up to the target where the judge was looking curiously at the nail that marked the center.

"No he didn't," Nancy laughed by my elbow. They all turned.

"He hit the nail on the head," Jim grunted as the judge turned to look at us, nodding subtly. "Right on the dog gone head."

I beamed in pride, reaching up on tip toe to kiss Will's cheek. He smiled at me as the McCoys became rowdy, claiming he had missed the target. I stepped around Will's protective arm, invading Calvin's personal space and smiling wickedly up at him.

"He won fair and square," I mimicked sweetly, taking a swig of the glass I still clutched in my tiny hand. Calvin looked livid. He shoved me.

"Shut up, Abigail!" Will stepped forward and grabbed him by the throat so quickly, he dropped his own glass.

"Touch her again and see what happens," he growled so venomously that I could see fear spring to Calvin's eyes as his cousins rushed to pull Will off of him. "I'll kill you, McCoy!"

"This here's a shootin' contest boys!" the round man claimed, stepping between our two parties as Uncle Jim took Will under arm.

"And my husband won it," I stated firmly, tossing down the now empty whiskey pint and hoisting my riffle up. "He hit the nail on the head."

"He didn't hit shit!" I raised my rifle to take aim at Jefferson McCoy, but the barrel was grabbed by Jim, who yanked it down and put his arm around my shoulder to yank me away. My blood was boiling and I could feel that my face had flushed in rage.

"Let it go, lil sister," Jim spat, reaching out to againgrab Will who had an arm around Nancy. He steered us away from the competition area, mumbling about how McCoys always had been sore losers.

"That ain't fare, Uncle Jim," Nancy piped up once we were some ways away. I now walked besides Will, tucked safely under his arm as his little sister strolled beside Jim. "Abi won that contest and they wouldn't give her the prize, and then Will won and they wouldn't give _him_ the prize neither!"

"Well," Jim sighed, "Them McCoys always were sneaky bastards. I 'spect your brother and sister-in-law there could out shoot any of 'em any day. Now what the hell is goin' on here?"

We had approached the center of the grounds and it was obvious from the way people were gathered around that something was happening. A fight from the sounds of it. Out of no where, a shot rang out and I yanked Nancy to my chest, lifting an arm to protect her head just as William did the same to me. Uncle Jim drew his pistol, spitting into the dirt as he continued forward into the now hysterical crowd.

"Ellison!" My blood ran cold as I heard my Uncle Anse's voice over all others. Yanking myself from Will's arms, I rushed forward after Jim, picking my skirts up when I heard him yelling for a doctor. My heart was thudding in my chest and as I shoved my way through the crowd, I wondered helplessly what I would find when I finally reached the scene of the fight.

"DADDY!" my scream as I saw my father lain in the dirt was filled with so much despair that I did not know how I had not died on the spot. I ran to him, body already shaking with sobs as I overtook him and my uncle who was crouched at his side. "Daddy!"

"Abi," he rasped, somehow still alive despite the grotesque amount of blood that was currently soaking through his clothes. I wept, falling to my knees besides him and taking his hand into mine. He was cold. "Abi?"

"I'm here," I stammered, looking up only briefly as the doctor came. I looked away as he pulled up my father's shirt, not wanting to see the damage. I gazed into my father's face, but his eyes were far away and he looked pale as I had never seen him. I felt like I was drowning in my rising panic.

"McCoy boys shot him," my aunt Lavicy whispered from where she had fallen to her knees beside me. My mind reeled, thinking ten steps ahead as I imagined bringing those devils to justice.

Their hides would pay the price.

My father began to mutter and I shook myself from my murderous fantasies, bringing my ear down to his lips. "W-Where's Cotton?"

"Cotton? Cotton!" Looking up, eyes bleary with tears, I saw my brother coming towards us slowly. I reached out my hand, yanking him down to the ground as he took it. I placed it with my own over my fathers. "He's here."

My father nodded, obviously in a great amount of pain as tremors shook his body. I sobbed harder, begging him to hold on as Cotton pleaded to go home. This was all too much for him. I squeezed his hand over our fathers as Will, Johnse, Lias, and the doctor each began to lift him from the ground. Following closely behind with my brother in toe, I helped them ease him into my uncle's cart before climbing in to sit beside him, Cotton hugging me tightly.

Through my hazy mind I thought of something and yelled out blindly for William, not knowing if he had remained or not. He appeared beside the cart on my side almost immediately, looking frazzled. I breathed deeply, reaching out to grip his shoulder and pointing in the direction his daddy had run after Skunk Head.

"You get after 'em," I ordered, voice trembling. "You get after them McCoy _bastards_ and you bring 'em back here to have justice done on 'em. You do that for me."

"I will," he swore, reaching up to cup my face between his hands as the doctor and my aunt Lavicy climbed into the front of the cart. He kissed me soundly but briefly, my tears seeping between our lips and turning the kiss salty. "I love you."

"I love you," I sobbed as the cart jerked into motion. We rode away from him and I had to pray he was successful as he rushed after his family to chase after the men that had done this to my pa. I turned back to him now, gasping weakly at my knees. I lifted my skirt, not caring for it as I pressed it firmly over the bullet wound in his gut. "Hold on, Papi," I whispered shakily, "You can't go, not yet. I need you – _we _need you. Me and Cotton."

He did not reply, but his eyes fluttered open just enough for him to look at me. I stared hard at him, hoping to tether him to this world with just my gaze. He could not go yet. I was not ready for him to leave.


	13. Kill Them All

West Virginia, 1884

I sat beside my daddy, his hand clasped in mine, clinging desperately to him in what I was sure to be his last hour on earth. The blood that I had been so dreaded to see was now smeared across my hands and face from when I had had to help carry him to the bed in my uncle's house. He lay now, wound exposed to the air, blood soaking into the bedding, and breathing shallowly as the doctor washed his hands. He had said there was nothing he could do for my father. Cotton sat beside me, gently stroking his shoulder, pale eyes wide in fright.

I was not crying nor shuddering anymore. I had gone numb, ignorant to anything besides my father and the shaky way his chest rose and fell. I watched him closely, making sure he kept on in that manner even when he closed his eyes. He could not die. I needed him. There was still so much I did not know of this life and I could not get by without my father's guidance. I had told William this when he had come to tell me they had captured the McCoy boys and were keeping them locked up out by the side of the cabin. This fact brought me some comfort, but I knew it would not bring my papa back from the edge of death and so barely responded to the news

"Is he gonna die?" Uncle Anse questioned some time later, voice trembling as he looked at his little brother. We had sent Robert E to call on their sister Martha who lived far off in Ohio. We wanted her here in case of anything. The doctor sighed tiredly, hands looking permanently stained by my father's blood. I hoped mine were not the same.

"He should have already."

I shifted at this, glassy eyes assessing the immediate situation. My fingers danced across my locket out of habit. The poor thing had my bloody finger prints all over it today. I stood. My father stirred and I told Cotton to take his hand in my absence so as to keep him calm. I ignored all calls after me as I exited the room, walking out into my family's back yard and heading over the shed. Wiping my hands shakily on my dress, which was also covered in blood, I pulled the door open, grunting as it showed resistance, and walked inside.

Many things hung hear, but I was looking for the timber that had been cut into boards. I spotted a stack of them towards the back and rolled up my sleeves, grabbing five. They were each about as long and wide as my own body and so I struggled, but did not quit as I dragged them out of the shed. I tossed them to the ground, panting before stepping over them to reach back into the shed. I grabbed the saw from off the wall.

"Abi." I froze, saw clutched to chest before relaxing and turning to face my husband, eyes cast down to the boards. "What're you doin'?"

I sniffed, wiping my hand across my cheek, no doubt getting more blood there before staring blankly ahead at Willim. He looked concernedly at my mad state. "I need to cut boards…for my daddy." I moved to step around him and he stopped me. I twisted away, beginning to struggle in earnest as he attempted to take the saw from my hands. "No! No! I have to!"

"You should go be with him," Will grunted, pushing me away as gently as he could as he finally wrenched the tool from my hands. A pain shot up from my palm and I curled my fingers over it, squeezing to numb it over. He had cut my hand on accident. "I'll cut the boards."

"I can do it-"

"You're not right, Abi," he whispered, coming to stand a hairs breath from me. I could not meet his eyes as he brushed a hand over my curls. They too were stained with blood from the amount of times I had clutched desperately at my hair. "You're actin' crazy. Just go sit with your daddy and Cotton. Please."

I pulled away from him, feeling hollow as I stared at his chest. I could not bear the thought of being in that room again, the smell of blood invading my nostrils and clinging to my clothes. It was all too much, but I had no choice. My family needed me and I had to be with them. Blinking rapidly, I turned from my husband without another word and walked dreamily back to the room where my father was being kept.

When I entered, I saw my brother was leaned over him, ear close to his lips as he whispered something rapidly. It was none of my business what this was, so I returned to my spot on my knees beside the bed, keeping my injured hand fisted in my lap. The doctor and Uncle Anse had gone, leaving us in peace with the man who had given us life. The stain of blood that had soaked into the bedding was expanding now and if I listened carefully, I could hear it dripping through the bed to the floor boards below. The sound intensified in my ears, drowning everything out and setting a dreadful pace like a clock. My mind blanked and I forgot how long I sat there. Second. Minutes. Hours?

"Abigail." My pa's raspy call pulled me from the terrible cycle of dripping, forcing me to look up to his ashen face. He motioned me forward. I traded places with Cotton, coming to rest besides my daddy's shoulder, leaning my arms on the damp bed. He looked so sickly and unlike himself. Tears pricked my eyes for the first time in hours and he tried to smile at me. "Abi, angel…I'm dyin'."

I sniffled, nodding my understanding as he paused to rest. He was going fast. The numbness that had filled my chest was replaced with an acute pain and I had to bite my lip to keep from bawling. He opened his eyes again, refocusing on me as he continued.

"But…I don't want you to be scared, because…I'm still gon' be…right here, whenever you…need me." I sobbed quietly, tears running down my face and cutting paths through the blood. My father shushed me gently, eyes looking far away even as he locked them with mine. "I want you to look after Cotton."

"I will," I promised, nodding. I barely recognized my own voice, so thick was it from tears.

"And stay close to Cap…h-he needs you more than you know." Another nod.

"I will."

"And I want you to remember…that I l-love, more than you could ever understand." His chest rose and fell with a shudder this time, looking as if it was caving in on itself. I sobbed harder.

"Daddy, don't go," I begged, feeling childish as I wished for something I knew would never happen. "Please."

"Abi." His voice was so faint now that I had to lean in to hear him, my hair falling over his bloody chest as he spoke into my ear. "You look just like your mama."

They were his last words. His final breath swooshed out of him, ruffling my hair as I let my head fall to his chest, a sob shaking my entire frame. A pain similar to what I imagined being shot felt like rushed through my chest, straight to my heart. I would have started wailing inconsolably if not for the soft, innocent voice of my twin brother.

"Abi?" I sniffled, stifling down my cry hurriedly as I sat up again, staring hard at my father's bare chest. It rose and fell no more. Reaching up blindly, I brushed my hand down his face, closing his eyes in peace as he was spirited away by angels. "Abi?"

"He's gone," I whispered lowly, leaning back from the bed. "He's gone, Cotton." I turned to my brother, face set grimly as I took in his shocked face. He shook his head side to side, eyes falling to his hands in his lap.

"No, no, no-"

"Yes," I interrupted, reaching for his hand. He yanked away, standing and beginning to pace hurriedly. "Ellison-"

"No, no, no, no, NOOO!" he wailed, hands twisting queerly as he clawed at his head. He had screamed so loudly that I jumped back, not having ever heard his voice at such a level. He looked like a caged animal as he continued to pace. Any attempts by me to console him were met with another pained howl until he ran from the room.

His cries were still audible to me and I sat in stunned silence staring at the bed. My daddy's corpse lay in it, still bare chested and bleeding in front of me. A breeze rolled through the open door and I shivered as I stood. Reaching down, I began to push the body to the edge of the bed. I could still hear my brother's pitiful sobs and they urged me to carry on as I continued to push. My mind had gone blank, I thought of nothing but what I was doing. It was not like earlier when I had felt a numb emptiness. I felt everything. The pain of losing my father pierced my chest so severely, it was a wonder I was not bleeding heavily onto the floor. I eased him to the edge of the bed just as my Uncle entered the room.

"Abi," he said brokenly, obviously knowing his brother had left this world as he watched me. "What're you doin?"

I was tired of people asking me that question. I was doing what I had to do.

I wiped sweat from my head agitatedly, reaching down to grab the sheets under my papa. "I don't want him to be cold," I mumbled, yanking them out further before folding them over his still form. "He and Cotton always kick the blankets off at night, but they both hate bein' cold."

"Abigail-"

"I just want him to be warm, Uncle Anderson!" I snapped, moving around the bed. I began to tuck the sheets in under him, my hands shaking badly as I made sure he was covered from shoulders to feet. "I want him to be comfortable." My voice sounded crazed even to me.

"Abi Angel," my uncle soothed, stepping to place his arms around me. I pulled away violently, swatting at his torso as my chest began to rise and fall rapidly. I felt as if I could not catch my breath.

"No!" I protested, struggling as he pulled me to him, lifting me slightly off the ground. "He can't sleep if he's not covered!" I kicked my legs out, grunting as my uncle rested a hand on the back of my head.

"He'll sleep fine, Angel," he promised, beginning to pull me from the room. I screamed, the pain in my chest feeling like it was burning me alive as he walked me away from the place where my father lay. I struggled and hissed and spit and scratched at him, no doubt doing more damage to my own person as he carried me outside.

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!" I wailed, pounding my tiny fists against his firm chest. "I HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF HIM – LET ME _GO_!" I was crying and crying loudly as he lowered me to the ground next to my brother who had curled up in a rocking ball, hands pressed over his ears as he too screamed in agony. There were no tears from me, only carnal shrieks of fury as my world was fell apart. My uncle held me down with only one hand, the other going to rest on my brothers back.

"I'm sorry you two," he said sincerely, tears in his voice. I tried to turn from him, only hurting myself as his grip on my arm tightened. "I know you loved your daddy, but he wouldn't want you carryin' on like this."

"I wanna see 'em!" I spoke up suddenly, a light breaking through the fog of my mind if only for a moment. "I wanna see the McCoy boys that did this," I spit angrily. Cotton stopped crying suddenly beside me, going still. I did not know if he had heard this before. My uncle looked at me warily.

"Abigail, I don't think that would be wise-"

"I WANT TO SEE THEM _NOW_!" My screams had drawn most of the Hatfield clan into the back area of the house where they saw me clawing and biting at my uncle, trying to make my way to the barn where the murderers were being kept. "GET _OFF_ ME!"

"Daddy, stop!" Will cried, coming forward as if to pull his father off of me. Devil Anse threw me to the ground roughly and drew his pistol on his son who froze in shock. Everyone took pause, my aunt Lavicy yelping in protest.

"Your wife's not well, son," Anse informed, not looking at me as I dragged myself to my knees. "I'm gonna call the doctor back for her before we send for the boys' mother-"

I threw myself at my uncle, not even able to control my own rage anymore as I snatched the pistol from his hand. He could have easily thrown me from him. Hurt me if he wanted to. But he did not want to. And even if he had, the fact that I was now aiming his own pistol in his face held him back.

"Abigail, no!" Lavicy yelled as I got shakily to my feet. My uncle eyed me sadly, knowing I did not want to hurt him but not wanting to risk agitating me any further. My hand shook as I held the gun on him, the weight seeming surprisingly high.

"I will see them," I growled lowly, one solitary tear falling from my eye. There was the sound of a scuffle off to the side. I turned, eyes blazing as I saw Uncle Jim holding Will back from tackling Johnse who had a riffle aimed at me. I blinked, not knowing how I had come to this point. Johnse shook as he kept his gun on me.

"Don't do anythin' stupid, Abi," he pleaded.

"Stop pointin' that gun at my wife!" Will spat, struggling against Jim who had him in a choke hold with his thick arm wrapped around his neck. I felt myself begin to panic. Everything was getting out of hand.

"I want to go to the barn, please," I stammered, lowering the gun to my side. Everyone eased up a bit, only to freeze up as I pointed it at Johnse when he tried to come near me. I was not about to be wrestled down like an animal. "Take me to the barn."

"Alright," he agreed, slowly setting his riffle on the ground, holding his hands up, palms out to me. Will still struggled in Jim's arm. My aunt looked about ready to shoot me herself, but then I figured she wasn't my aunt anymore. The one person tying me to the title of her niece was gone, and she did not look too keen on having me as a daughter-in-law right now. I did not begrudge her this. Johnse came to stand before me. "You wanna gimme that gun?"

"I'll hold it," I ground out, pressing it to my middle as he shrugged, stepping aside to let me pass before him. I eyed my handsome cousin warily before deciding he was not bright enough to pull the wool over my eyes anyhow.

"Abigail." I turned to my uncle, still resting on the ground. A shot of guilt went through me as I thought of how badly I had disrespected him today. My daddy would be so ashamed. He eyed me as if I were one of his own children and my heart clenched. "It won't bring you no peace."

I thought this over. He and everyone else thought I meant to kill the McCoys. And maybe I did. I was not sure at that point. But even if I were, I was under no illusion that it would bring me peace. I knew what my uncle had planned in the event that his little brother died. I knew the boys would be sent burning to hell no matter which of our hands sent them. I also knew that killing them would not bring my daddy back. Killing them would not fill the hole that had just been carved into my heart. Killing them would do nothing except for kill them. I looked my uncle in the eye.

"I'll never know peace," I grumbled, turning my back on him. Armed and terrible, I walked slowly besides Johnse as he lead me around to the barn. Our family followed at a distance, watching in frightened silence as I clenched and unclenched my hand around the pistol. My, but if it was not growing heavier by the moment.

Johnse waved Skunk Head to stand down as we approached, the older man looking shocked as he saw me approaching with the gun in hand. My cousin helped me ascend the stairs to the barn house, taking my free hand in his as I used the one holding to pistol to lift my bloodstained skirt. Even though we were walking upwards, I felt as if I were walking to hell. I hesitated outside the door, breath catching in my throat as I imagined what awaited me on the other side. I entered.

My first reaction was shock at seeing Bud in the room. He had always been the 'younger' McCoy boy. The innocent one. But as I looked at him now, shirt stained with my father's blood and a haunted look in his eyes, I realized he was a full grown man just like any other. And he had done murder.

Pharmer was there too, lip trembling in a constant want to cry as he spotted me. I found it hard to imagine this short whelp of a man stabbing Ellison Hatfield twenty-six times, but others had seen it done and my daddy had not died of a cold. Pharmer too was a murderer.

The last man, I should not have been surprised to see, but I found my breath always hitched a bit whenever I saw Tolbert McCoy. His jaw was set as severely as the last time I had seen him; still fighting himself. On what I would never know. He stared down his nose at me, nostrils flaring as his eyes darted to the gun in my hand. I had almost forgotten it, and held it firmer to my side when I noticed him eyeing it. He did not make any move to take it from me.

"Your daddy die?" The question was brisk and cold, but his voice trembled. He knew what was planned if my papa died too. Maybe no one had told him outright, but he knew deep down. Despite what my cousins and husband liked to say and maybe even believe, Tolbert McCoy was not a dumb man.

"Have you seen your mama yet?" I asked, ignoring his questioned as I looked over to eye his brothers. The younger two shook their heads confusedly. They did not know she had been called upon to say her goodbyes to them. I did not dwell on the fact, not wanting to feel any sympathy for these boys who felt none for me. I looked at the ground. "She'll be here soon I reckon." There was a heavy silence that settled over the room. "…My daddy passed over the Jordan with the angels not too long ago."

Bud gasped. A small, wispy sound that seemed childish at a time like this considering what he had had a hand in. Murder and all. I let my eyes settle on him, demanding silence with my gaze. He quieted himself. I had folded my arms behind me when I spoke of my father, but brought them down now, Bud and Pharmer noticing the gun for the first time. I could tell Bud wanted to gasp again but stifled it as I glared at him.

"You three…" I began slowly, voice shaking. "Killed…one a the people that meant the most to me in this world." They all shifted awkwardly. I continued, voice growing in strength and volume. "You stabbed him over and over again and then shot him when he wasn't even in your fight to begin with-"

"Abi-"

"Shut up!" I snapped on Pharmer. He jumped. "Don't speak to me! You three are the scum of the earth!"

"Big talk for an orphan bastard."

I stepped forward and had the pistol raised to Tolbert's face so fast that his two brothers jumped back, knocking themselves over in shock. Johnse made to grab me, but I stopped him with a hand raised blindly in his direction. I pulled the hammer back, mouth set in a grim line as I glared into the tall man's eyes.

"I'd like to kill you," I whispered, knocking the barrel under his chin a bit. He flinched. I pulled it back. "I'd like to put a bullet in your brain." I pressed it to the center of his forehead, grinding it against his skull. We stood in a tense silence, the air sparking with all the hatred that flew between us. I drew the gun back. "But I have to humor my kin." The words were near identical to the ones he had spoken to Johnse the night in the cabin and the irony was not lost on Tolbert as a look of fear flashed behind his stony eyes. "I hope God has mercy on you, Tolbert McCoy," I hissed lowly, venom dripping from my words like they were rattlesnake fangs. "Because my family will not."

I turned on my heal, stomping passed Johnse in my rush to leave the barn. Stepping into the sunlight, I gasped, running straight into William. He grabbed the pistol from me, tossing it Jim as he hugged me to his chest. I was guessing he expected me to fight him, but the fight had gone plum out of me after seeing the McCoy boys. What I had said to Tolbert had been true. I sincerely wished I could have brought myself to take his life, but I just could not. The guilt would have weighed on me and I knew my pa would not have wanted me to have blood on my hands. At the final thought of my pa, I broke down, slumping into William's arms as I sobbed, sadness overwhelming me once more.

My daddy was dead.

Tolbert was right; I _was_ an orphan.

I would never hear his ringing laughter as he played a joke on Uncle Anse. I would never be able to go to him for advice or to ask what my mother was like. A mother who I apparently resembled greatly. I cried harder, hugging myself to my husband as I feared I might vomit from the way my gut was wrenching so. He shushed me gently, bringing me to kneel on the ground before the barn steps.

"It's gon' be alright," he promised, stroking my hair lovingly as I wept onto his shoulder. I knew that. I knew this could not last forever. Still it _felt _as if it would. He pulled back from me, wiping my cheeks gently as he looked into my face. I stared at his milky eye, finding only a minimal amount of the comfort I was used to seeing in its depths. This wound was too great right now. I breathed deeply as he asked me if there was anything, _anything_ he could do for me. The rest of the family was gathered not far from us.

"Kill 'em," I sniffed lowly, hands fisted in the front of his shirt. I pulled him back to me, bringing my cheek to rest over his heart. "Kill 'em all."


	14. Harden Your Hearts

West Virginia, 1884

"Kill 'em," she whispered lowly. "Kill 'em all."

"I promise," I murmured into her hair before pulling away. My young wife looked like she had walked through hell to come to lie here limply in my arms. Her hands and hair and face had blood smeared over them from her daddy's no doubt mangled body and her skirt was starting to turn a sickening brown color as it dried into its fabric. I hated to see her in this state but worse than her physical appearance was the hazy look in her eyes.

It was clear her daddy's death had crushed her down to a place where I could not reach her. She was so devastated she had gone against everything either of us had ever known and drawn a gun on my pa, her uncle. My heart had stopped when I saw her shakily aiming that pistol on our family members. There was nothing left of the little girl I had grown up with at that moment and I had been terrified Johnse would shoot her down.

The short amount of time we had spent together as man as man and wife had flashed before my eyes, causing an acute pain to spring up in my chest. I couldn't live without Abigail. I knew that now. Losing her would be worse than losing an eye because there would be nothing left for me to live for. Not my family, not this feud, nothing. My life would become ten times more empty than it had been the four days she spent away from our house when I was nineteen years old. Which would mean I would become ten times more ornery than I had been then. Lord knew my family could not handle that.

"William." My father's voice had me shaking myself and turning from Abigail to look at him. He nodded down at his daughter-in-law, dark eyes looking as broken as mine would if Johnse, Robert E, Elliot, Elias, Detroit, or Joseph were to be killed. Somehow in the middle of all this, I had forgotten that he had lost his baby brother. I wanted to say something to him, but my daddy had always been the one to comfort me and so I was not practiced in this area. "We're 'bout to move her pa out back…take her on inside."

I nodded, gathering my wife into my arms. She did not resist as she had been doing ever since my Uncle Ellison had been stabbed and it worried me a bit. With a grunt, I lifted her from the ground, one arm under her knees and the other wrapped round her shoulders. She turned her face into my chest as I walked her around the front of the house. Every Hatfield gathered steered clear and they should have with the way I was glaring at them. I didn't want anyone looking down at my wife.

"Will!" I turned as I walked through our front door, noticing Nancy rushing over from the table where her, Mary, and Elizabeth had been sitting. Tears streamed down her porcelain face, dainty hands pressed over her trembling lips. "Uncle Ellison died?" I nodded grimly. Elizabeth and Mary looked at each other. "Is Abi alright?"

I looked down at the young woman, not sure how to answer. She hadn't said anything since she had begged me to kill the McCoy boys. A request I could not wait to carry out, but first I had to tend to her. Those were my husbandly duties. I again glanced at her blood splattered appearance and frowned.

"I dunno," I answered honestly. "She's gone quiet." My little sister looked concernedly at her cousin. "Hey. Go heat some water so we can give her a bath."

My usually rebellious sibling nodded immediately, rushing to have Liz and Mary help her to go draw water as I carried Abi into their bedroom. I laid her down on the bed, crawling in to lay beside her silently. She had fisted her hand into my shirt and her face appeared to be permanently buried in my shoulder as I stroked her back. I knew nothing I could say could inspire her to talk and I wasn't sure if anything she said would be something I wanted to hear right now. As horrible as that sounded in my mind, I knew I could not stand to see Abi in pain and her pa's passing had caused her an unspeakable amount of pain. The sadness I personally felt over my favorite uncle's death was nothing compared to hers. And Cottons.

Cotton.

I shook my head as I thought of my albino brother-in-law. I had seen him stumble out of the spare room where his pa had died, hands twisted as he cried raggedly, walking in confused circles. I felt for him, I truly did. In the last ten months that Abigail and I had been married, Cotton had become a fixture in our house on most days. The two siblings were thick as thieves and there was nothing anyone could do to change that. I had tolerated his presence because I could see the way my wife lit up when her brother was nearby. I wanted her to be happy, even if sometimes I resented the young man's presence in our home due to intimate reasons.

But now everything would be different.

I was no fool, I knew Abi would want Cotton-Top to come stay with us now that their daddy had passed over the Jordan, and I had no issue with that. The boy was not right in the head. He was simply minded and needed to be looked after, but I begrudged the fact that we could be saddled with him instead of a child of our own. I loved my cousin, truly I did. Few things meant more to me than his safety and happiness, but it just didn't seem fair to me that we would now take on the responsibility of looking after a near eighteen year old boy not even a year after being joined in matrimony.

"Will?" I looked up, pulled from my thoughts by Nancy's timid voice. Abi still had not raised her face. "The waters all ready and set up in the boys' room." I blinked in confusion before I remember I no longer lived here. The boys' room was not considered my room anymore because I lived alone with Abigail.

I nodded, sitting up and dragging her with me. She was dead weight, but she was also light. Thanking Nancy, I carried her bridal style through the now empty house. I guessed Nancy had cleared out her sisters and baby brothers, probably gathering them somewhere near the chicken coop to keep them from seeing our uncle's body and their cousin's state of shock. She was a smart girl, my little sister.

When I reached the top floor, Abi still in my arms, I walked into my old room and took a moment to look everything over. Besides a few minor changes, and a lack of any of my personal effects, the room looked exactly the same as the last day I had spent in it. The girls had dragged the basin to the side, water heated over the fire steaming within it. I sat Abi on the side of the bed, taking to my knee in front of her.

"Abi Angel?" I took her face between my hands, trying to get her to focus on me, but her eyes were glazed over and she would only look beyond me, into a vast world that I could not view. With a sigh, I patted her knee and began undressing her slowly. It was nothing like our wedding night, or any night thereafter. This was strictly sad. Once she was stark naked, and still speechless as a newborn baby, I lifted her from the bed, lowering her slowly into the tub. If the water was too hot, she showed no sign of it, barely blinking as she was submerged up to her arm pits. I sighed. "Abi, ya can't stay this way."

She did not respond to words or touch as I began to wash her body. It was frightening, the way she let me simply control her body, not lifting a limb unless I did so for her and not blinking as I scooped water over her head. She sat, soaked to the bone and staring blankly ahead as I scrubbed my fingers into her scalp. I stared at her with my one good eye, noting how lost she looked. With a quick glance to her now damp tresses, I patted her shoulder lightly. "Your hair needs tendin'."

Leaving her momentarily sitting in the basin, I scoured the room for a stray comb and finally found one under Robert E's pillow. Returning to kneel behind my wife, I took her damp hair in hand and began to comb through it gently, starting at the bottom and working my way up. We did this often in our own home, talking light heartedly of things to come. The idea of children came up more often than not and I knew it was something she had her heart set on. I wanted kids too, of course. I wanted sons I could teach to shoot and daughters I could watch grow up to look just like their mama. I wanted to raise a family with Abigail and I wanted her to be happy. More than anything I wanted that.

I stopped my detangling of her hair as her slender shoulders began to shake slightly. I pushed around to the side of the basin, studying my wife's profile with my still useable eye. She had her knees drawn up to her chest in the water, arms wrapped around them tightly. I had washed her face and it was now set in a heartbreaking frown as tears leaked from beneath her closed eyelids. She was weeping.

"Abi," I whispered, reaching out to stroke her head loving. She leaned into the touch, opening her pale eyes to look sadly at me.

"My daddy's dead," she whimpered as if it were new information. I nodded.

"I know."

She closed her eyes and continued to cry.

I wasn't sure how long I sat there, watching her cry in the water until a knock came to the door. I started, glancing at Abi as she ducked down to her nose in the water which was now dark with blood washed off from her body. Standing, I opened the door minimally, blocking the space with my broad body as I squinted curiously at my mother. She looked tired and as if her skin was pulled tight across her face. I wasn't sure if I had ever seen her look so old. I frowned.

"What is it?"

"The McCoy boys," she whispered quickly, apparently sensitive to the subject matter. "Their mother's here to see 'em." My eyebrows rose. "As soon as she leaves though…" Her sentence hung there and I knew what she was saying. We were going to kill them for what they had done to our family and I didn't have much time to get ready. A fiery rage rushed up in my belly and I nodded quickly before closing the door on her concerned face.

"Abi." My wife shot up from the water under which she had ducked when she heard my mother's voice. "We're leavin' to kill the McCoy boys soon." I took a knee by her bath, looking her dead in the eye. "I'll kill 'em," I swore. "I'll kill 'em all for you."

For a split second, I saw a flash of the old Abigail in her wounded eyes. The Abi that understood the feud between our families, but still did not condone violence. The Abi that although having nearly been killed by the McCoy boys, had begged my daddy to spare the Jim simply because he had shown her a sort of backhanded kindness. The Abi that would not have the people she loved commit murder simply to appease their pride. I saw that girl for a fraction of a moment, but then she was gone, replaced by a girl that looked like my Abigail, but did not have her incredibly sympathetic heart. She would have her revenge.

"I love you." It was said in a grave tone and I knew she was thanking me for committing an act that would put my soul in jeopardy. Murder. I could burn in hell for this, but as I looked at her slender face all framed by soaked curls, I knew I would burn for eternity to see her smile again. I nodded, leaning forward to kiss her. She pulled away. "Don't take Cotton with you…I don't want him seein' that."

I thought of arguing this with her, but then decided Cotton-Top probably wasn't ready to go anywhere at this point. With a nod, I kissed her quickly on the forehead and stood. Letting her know I would be back, I exited the room, shutting the door behind me, and went pounding down the stairs. My mother sat at our table, head in hands and shoulders slumped low. I paused on my way out the house, tilting my hat back on my head as I frowned at her.

"Mama?" She did not turn this to me.

"Don't do this, Cap," she sniffed. "Don't send yourself burnin' to hell over a grudge." I thought about the girl I had left broken in the basin upstairs and felt myself become angry with my mama for the first time in my life.

"It ain't a grudge," I ground out, shifting my weight so I could look around her shoulder. She was scowling at the table. "My uncle needs to be avenged."

"People die-"

"It wasn't his time!"

"Maybe it was!" I stepped back in shock as my mother turned on me, face streaked with tears, hands twisted in her shawl. "Maybe Ellison was our sacrificial lamb; the person that has to fall to let us all know that this _can't_ go on!"

I turned my milky eye to her, the other staring at the ground in disgust. I could not believe she would say something like that about her late brother-in-law. No one deserved to be our sacrificial lamb and as long as I lived I would make sure no one ever was. Tipping my hat at my mama, I left the house, grabbing my gun from the chair by the door as I exited.

Outside, I saw that my daddy had rounded us into a posse, every man armed and on horseback around the McCoy bastards. They were tied like hogs on their knees on a board we used to drag timber tied to the back of daddy and Johnse's horses. They looked scared and shaken as they kneeled there. It brought me the tiniest bit of satisfaction knowing they knew what was coming to them.

"Let's ride," my daddy called as I was saddling my own mount. My family whooped happily, trotting off with the McCoys dragging behind them. I hopped quickly into my saddle, following close behind, gun still in hand as I rode up besides the board carrying the three young men. Pharmer looked up at me, eyes glassy and terrified. I glared back, fog eye hidden slightly under my hat. Hoisting my riffle up, I pantomimed shooting him through the head. He looked faint. I chuckled darkly.

The ride was silent except the occasional jeer at the McCoys. I spent most of the time thinking about my Uncle Ellison. He had been a brave, honest man and did not deserve to die the way he had. He had never been deep into the feud between our families and did his best to keep his children from it. Thinking back on these facts, I believed my uncle was the smartest man I had ever known. He knew that taking an issue into your own hands would bring bloodshed and he did not want anyone in his family to be dragged down by the likes of McCoy. My uncle had been a good man.

And we would avenge him.

An hour after the ride began, it was over with my father whistling to signal that this was the place. We were surrounded by pawpaw trees and as I looked around, I saw we had traveled down into the flatter area of West Virginia. We all began to dismount silently, guns carried under our arms as Robert E, Johnse, and myself began to wrangle the McCoy boys. Bud and Pharmer resisted slightly, bodies quivering as we dragged them to the trees. I switched places with Johnse, trading Pharmer for Tolbert as we began to tie them to the pawpaw trees with the help of our kin. The tall red head glared down at me as I secured his legs. I glared right back, tying the rope to what I knew to be painfully tight as I stood.

"You reap what you sow," I informed him, fixing him with a cold look from my milky eye. His nostrils flared, but in his final hour, Tolbert had no snide remarks to shoot back with. I supposed impending death will take the starch out of any man. With a scoff, I returned to stand back with our posse. Glancing over I saw Johnse speaking lowly with Pharmer and had to roll my eyes. That idiot was setting himself up for failure one of these days and we would not always be around to save his sorry ass.

When he was finally finished and standing beside the rest of us, my father advised us all to raise our guns and take aim. With a sadistic smile, I aimed right between Tolbert's eyes, briefly recalling watching him do the same to Abigail. Letting my eyes wonder over the man's brothers, I saw that they were crying quietly. Pharmer reached out and grabbed Bud's hand and I took pause. For a second I imagined myself comforting Robert E in the same situation. These boys were our ages.

"Harden your hearts."

My daddy's wise advice swept away the illusion and again I saw the McCoy boys that had viciously attacked my uncle. Setting my jaw, I turned eyes back on Tolbert and waited for Devil Anse to shoot first. When he did, his bullet catching Bud in the heart, we all let loose. The sound of our bullets cracked through the silence of the forest like a thunder storm in the night. My first shot rang true and hit Tolbert right between the eyes, throwing his head back as blood splattered down his face. A sick sort of satisfaction settled itself in my gut as I withdrew. My kin were avenged now. Abi was avenged, and that was all I wanted.

When the smoke cleared, the McCoy boys were dead, their bodies bullet-riddled and hanging limply from where they had slumped against their ropes. Looking over I saw that Pharmer and Bud's hands were still clasped and had to turn away before I could see any of my brothers in their place. I was happy they were dead, truly, but I had never killed someone in cold blood before today. I rested my rifle against my leg, mouth twisted in a grimace as Good 'Lias went forward and shot each boy in the head at close range just to be certain. They were gone.

We all shifted awkwardly, going quiet in the aftermath of mass murder. We did nothing until my pa ordered for the boys to be cut down. Their bodies would be returned to their mama across the Tug in Kentucky. Skunk Head and my great uncles Basil and Floyd would deliver them, one boy thrown over the back of each of their horses. I knew this wasn't the right way to handle bodies but they were not special to us so we did not have to be delicate with them I supposed. When all was said and done, they went one way and we went the other, riding back towards my daddy's home where our family waited for us. Silent.

An hour later when we reached the house and put the horses to rest, I went inside the house with my brothers to find Nancy, the girls, the babies, Abigail, and Cotton-Top all playing with some of the girls' old dolls. Cotton was laying down, his head resting in his sister's lap. Abi had changed into one of Nancy's night gowns, her hair falling down her back and baby Joseph cradled in her arms. She apparently had urged the children to get ready for bed since the sun was now setting outside and they were all in sleep shirts. Nancy, Mary, and Elizabeth all had their hair let loose, letting three year old Detroit tug on in playfully. Elliot and Elias were dozing besides their sisters, eyelids low and looking heavy. If I didn't know these people, it was almost easy to imagine that Abigail was a mama and the seven children surrounding her were hers. But it wasn't so.

"Cap's back!" They all jumped as Cotton got up to come and hug me. Robert E and Johnse walked around me to speak with the others lowly, no doubt describing what we had done to the McCoy boys. Looking over my cousins snowy head, I watched his sisters' eyes go dim and stony as she listened to what became of her father's murderers. She still did not look like her old self, but it was obvious she was slightly comforted by the fact that the boys were no longer living. When Cotton finally released me, I moved to sit behind her, legs bent at her sides like when we were younger. She leaned her arms against my knees just as she had back then.

"Nancy," she said lowly, drawing everyone's attention. Robert E and Johnse had stopped talking. "Take the children up to bed now, it's gettin' late." No one wanted to argue with her and so with Robert E's help, Nancy herded my many siblings out of the room, each of them dropping a 'goodnight' as they went. Robert E headed upstairs after shaking hands with Johnse who was going to ride back to his cabin in the woods. Cotton returned to his spot beside Abi, head rested in her lap as she she stroked his hair. I guessed my mother had already gone to bed and told my father as much when he passed through the main room. We were quiet for a time. "They took my daddy out back."

I nodded, reaching out to part her hair with one finger down her scalp. She shivered. "When's the funeral gon' be?"

"In a few days I reckon." He voice was no more than a whisper as she looked down at her twin. The light snore coming from her lap let me know the young man had drifted off to sleep. "Cotton's gon' have to come stay with us."

"I know," I sighed. I knew this talk would come sooner rather than later (we would have to begin moving his things tomorrow most likely). I had thought of saying we could move into her daddy's old house, but I figured it would be too hard for her to bear for the time being.

"Do you mind in it?" she asked, voice hoarse from crying as well as lack of use. I shook my head, beginning to braid the right side of her hair silently. Her shoulders lowered as she heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank you, William." Leaning forward, I pressed a kiss to the back of her head. She leaned into me and I let my chin rest over her shoulder, arms coming to wrap around her middle. We were quiet for a time.

"It's gon' be alright," I murmured against her collar bone, pressing a kiss there as well as I heard her sniff back tears.

"Yeah," she said, sparing me a watery smile. I kissed her temple fondly, resting my cheek against her head. "Yeah, I know."

**From this point on, historical time accuracy should pick up.**


	15. For All Intents and Purposes

**Changing the series' time of when Elizabeth died.**

West Virginia, 1886

"Careful with that, Nancy," I warned, wiping my hands down the front of my apron as I peeked over my cousin's shoulder. She was currently funneling cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl and I could tell the front of her dress was already covered in white. "We don't want to clean up a mess before Will gets back."

Nancy threw me an easy smile over her soiled shoulder and I had to laugh at the flour smeared over her cheeks. Now seventeen, Nancy had leveled with me in height and her hair fell in long, syrupy waves down her back. She was very petit, with sharp eyes and a sharper tongue. Clever too. It was no wonder John Vance had asked my uncle for her hand when she was still fifteen. It was strange to think of my little cousin as a married woman, but I supposed time has a way of catching up with all of us.

"You just worry about butterin' that pan, Abi," she teased, giving me her back once more as her long braid slid off her shoulder. "You keep pausin' to tell _me_ what to do and this cake'll never get finished."

I laughed, shaking my head as I did as she suggested and went back to my pan. She and I were alone in mine and William's house; all the men off at work in the timber yard. I was glad for her company since most days I was in the house alone, cleaning and waiting for William and Cotton to return home. My brother had moved in with us after my father's funeral two years prior. It had been a rough transition, with the two of us crying ourselves to sleep most nights, me doing so in my own bed after sitting with Cotton late into the night.

The hole I felt in my heart at the loss of my father had not vanished nor receded in any way. Even knowing the McCoy boys responsible were dead and buried brought me no comfort on the nights when I would wake up calling out for my pa only to find William watching me sleep worriedly. I could never be sure how exactly Cotton was handling being parentless. He was so innocent and open with everything and yet his deepest emotions were a mystery to me. I simply had to live with the fact that, on the surface at least, he seemed happy here with me and William.

We had carried on as best we could after burying Ellison Hatfield, my uncle leading the movement out of the deep depression many of us had settled into. He was always quick to remind my brother and myself that our father would not have wanted us to dwell on his death. My father was a lover of life and all it had to offer and wanted his children to be the same. I carried on each day knowing it was what he would want me to do.

The last two years in his absence had been different in many ways but also the same. I still saw my family often; Jim Vance coming by regularly to take William and Cotton hunting, Johnse never far off at his drip in the woods, and my aunt and uncle along with their younger children just a ways down the hill. Nancy had moved to Kentucky to live with John, but seeing as how he worked the timber yard here in Virginia, she was around quite often, admitting to not liking being so far from her family. I imagined that John would soon move them down this way to save himself the earache of having Nancy suggest it herself.

Life was good for all intents and purposes.

The feud between us Hatfields and the McCoys had cooled off after that sad Election Day. I suspected we were all licking the wounds of lost loved ones. I had no illusion that the feud had died. It had only gone dormant for a time, possibly because no one from either clan had dared cross the Tug since the McCoy bodies had been returned to their mother. Besides Nancy, no Hatfield had stepped foot in Kentucky for two years; and technically speaking, Nancy was a Vance now. We were all taking a cautious step back and regarding each other, but I knew the next wave could not be far off and I did my best to enjoy this temporary peace while it lasted since only time would tell when the next move would be made and by whom.

Life was good for all intents and purposes…but it was not perfect.

William and I had still not been able to conceive a child and it weighed heavy on my heart. I had begun to think long ago that there was something wrong with me and that it was possible I could not bear children at all. The thought alone would reduce me to tears every time I dwelled too long on it. There was nothing I wanted more in this world than to give Will a son or daughter. I felt we both deserved it after all we had been through just to be together. So every night after I put Cotton to sleep, I kneeled down and prayed at the foot of his bed for God to send me a child. I did not say these prayers in front of William because I did not want him to know my doubts and fears on the matter.

Will was still as loving and caring as he had ever been with me. He had accepted Cotton into our home without argument and took my twin under his wing, teaching him how to hunt, fish, and work in the yard properly. He never shouted at the young man for his silly, childish mistakes and would not hear a bad word spoken against him or me. Not even the terrible Jim Vance was allowed to raise his voice at me in our home and Will had even asked his mother to leave on occasion when she was being particularly rude to me. The man put his family first in front of everything. But while his attitude toward Cotton and myself had stayed the same, or even improved, his attitude toward everything else had grown darker.

It had taken me months to spot it, but after he had returned from killing the McCoy brothers, William had changed somehow. He was rough around the edges and irritable with people that were not members of our household. He had snapped on Johnse more times than I could count and the young man rarely bothered to visit anymore for fear of his brother's temper. Likewise, Will was short with his other siblings if they began to pester him for too long, Nancy and Robert E usually getting the worst of it until I stepped in. I simply did not know what had gotten in to him.

I worried sometimes that killing the McCoys had splintered a little piece of his soul in some way, but whenever I worked up the courage to ask about that day, he spoke of it as if it did not affect him at all. It was strange the way he described shooting Tolbert McCoy right between the eyes, his own mismatched ones staring off into the distance at something I could not see. I had stopped asking about the incident some time ago, not liking the satisfaction that would well up in my soul every time I heard of the way Tolbert's head had whipped back from the force of the bullet penetrating his skull.

I sighed now, shaking myself from these somber thoughts and memories. None of that mattered now. I was here now, in my kitchen with my cousin, baking a cake for my husband's birthday. William was turning twenty-two today and I wanted to have something nice to give him when he got home from the timber yard. He and Cotton left before the sun rose every morning, eating at Uncle Anse's as they stopped to ride with him and Robert E. Today I had feigned sleep while they both dressed and left; jumping up immediately once I heard their horses ride off from the porch. I had ridden to Nancy's the day before to call on her assistance and John had been nice enough to drop her off early that morning, doubling back to head to the yard with a vow of silence on him. This was going to be a surprise.

"Ready for the butter, Nancy?" I asked, pushing the prepared pan to the other edge of the counter as my cousin turned to me, wiping her cheek on her shoulder only to smear more flour on her skin. I bit my lip against laughter. She nodded, placing the bowl gently on the counter as I grabbed a smaller one set on the table that had a lump of soft, creamy butter in it which I poured into the mixture.

"All these ingredients must a cost you a fortune," Nancy observed, absentmindedly licking salt from her lips. I shrugged, stirring the butter in gently so as not to make a mess. It had been pretty expensive to buy everything needed to make a cake [including a recipe to tell me how it was done], but I was determined to make this birthday special for Will. "The butter especially."

"Well, I wasn't about to churn it myself," I joked good naturedly earning a chuckle from my cousin as she went to read over the recipe at the table once more. "How are things with John?"

"Oh they're alright," she mused lightly, her slight shoulders rising and falling noiselessly as she shrugged. She returned to my side and I raised a knowing eyebrow at her, not halting my slow turning of the spoon. She rolled her eyes. "Marriage ain't what I expected and John's eyes tend to wonder."

"As much as Johnse's used to?" I attempted to tease light heartedly even though my brow had furrowed at her words. I could not imagine a husband with a wondering eye. Knowing William had never looked at another woman since he was ten was one of my greatest comforts in our relationship.

Nancy smiled, but it did not reach her eyes. "I do not think anyone's eyes could wonder as much as Johnse's used to," she replied smugly, her mouth twisted in a dour smirk. I returned the look, my mouth almost hurting from the forced grin.

Poor Johnse.

After Roseanna had left, he had of course been down, but after the Election Day of 1884 it was even worse since the girl refused to even see his face. I knew through William that he had traveled to her aunt's in an attempt to apologize, but the woman had turned him away saying Roseanna wanted nothing to do with the man that had killed her brothers. I felt for the both of them. A few months ago, news had come from across the Tug that their little daughter, Elizabeth, had perished. Johnse was inconsolable having never even gotten a chance to hold his baby girl before she was put in the ground on McCoy land. He would never see her. Everyone pitied him even if they would not say so.

"But marriage life suites me other than that," Nancy assured, warding off the silence that had followed at the mention of Johnse. "John is kind to me and I do not suspect any McCoys would dare to threaten a nephew of Jim Vance."

"Well," I grunted, rolling my shoulder back as I stopped stirring, "That may actually be more reason to approach you two. You know Uncle Jim is the one who started this whole feud."

"I know," Nancy murmured solemnly, leaning back against the counter as I retrieved sugar from our cupboards. I nodded, beginning to spoon the sweet crystals into the thick mixture.

"He killed Harmon McCoy and Ole Ran'l never let it go," I continued, reclosing the sugar sack as I spooned in the last tablespoon. "He had no proof a course, but everyone can guess Jim killed that man."

"How can you be sure?"

"Will once said it's in Jim's nature," I shrugged, replacing the sugar and again wiping my hands down the front of my apron. Nancy took up stirring this time as she shot me a look of interest to continue. I shrugged. "Jim is a man a violence and to him that solves everythin'. Harmon joined the Union Army durin' the war and so Jim and his Wildcats killed him when they all got home."

"Wildcats?"

"A gang that he was part of back in the army," I informed her conversationally as I picked up the two eggs I had collected from the coup earlier that morning. "Your daddy was their leader."

"Did he help kill that man?" she continued her tirade of questions, catching some of the mixture on her pinky and fingering it into her mouth. I smacked her knuckles.

"He was sick and on bed-rest that day," I said truthfully, sniffing as I motioned her to put the bowl down. "But he dared to defend Jim and Randolph never forgave 'im."

"Forgave 'im?" she pressed, leaning besides me as I cracked the eggs into the bowl.

"Well, you know your daddy and McCoy used to be best friends," I said smugly, reveling in the shocked look on her powdered face.

"How do you _know _these things?" she asked flabbergast, slapping her hand down on the counter and kicking up flour. I blinked rapidly, still smiling at her affronted look. I shrugged nonchalantly.

"Will told me."

"How does _he_ know?" She squinted at me incredulously. "Daddy refuses to talk about why the feud started."

"Jim told 'im," I reasoned, nudging her out of the way as I reached for the vanilla. She moved away, shaking her head in shock, mouth quirked oddly to the side in contemplation. I had to roll my eyes at her.

"That sneaky bastard," she muttered, gnawing thoughtfully on her lower lip. I frowned at her language. "All these years he's known the whole story and he wouldn't tell _me_. His only sister."

"You have three other sisters," I chuckled bemusedly, recalling Mary, Elizabeth, and baby Rosada. Nancy waved me off as if her younger siblings were simply imaginary.

"Well I'm the favorite," she declared proudly, back to me as stopped through the bottom floor of my house. I chuckled at her. "I wonder if he told Johnse and Robert E."

"I don't believe he did," I called over my shoulder, careful not to let the milk I was pouring in overflow. "How is Robert E by the way? Have you spoken with him recently?"

"Oh, he's still got his eye on Mariah Wolford," my younger cousin huffed, blowing air out from her cheeks and sending tendrils of hair flying around her face. I nodded for her to continue as I picked up the pan to move it over the fire. "Too scared to court her though I reckon."

I tisked, shaking my head as I snatched my hands away from the flames before I was burned. "He needs to get a move on before someone else comes along to marry her."

"I think Bill McCoy's partial to her," Nancy said as way of agreement.

I shifted as I pictured Calvin and Jim's twenty year old brother in my mind. I shrugged. Mariah could do worse, but I wanted her with my cousin. Even with three dead, the McCoy children outnumbered those of the Hatfields thirteen to eleven with their youngest, Franny, already being thirteen. Current youngest Hatfield child, Rosada, had just been born last year. We needed more family. Another reason why my prolonged state of childlessness worried me.

"This'll be done in a half hour or so," I informed absently, staring intently at the baking pan of batter of the fire. Nancy nodded, reaching up to fiddle with her long braid, unintentionally coating the tip with flour. She really needed to wash off. I eyed her curiously for the corner of my eyes, still recognizing the shy girl that sucked her thumb and hated to speak as a child. "I am sorry John Vance has a wonderin' eye."

Nancy shifted, twinkling eyes going dim as she looked thoughtful. With a shrug, her lips twitched into an unsure smile. "I just wish my husband looked at me the way Will looks at you," she murmured lowly. I blinked at this, turning away so she would not see the blush that spread up my neck.

"I'm sure John-"

I was interrupted by my front door being thrown open. Nancy yelped, jumping badly as the door slammed into the wall behind it and Will stomped in. I let out a breath of annoyed relief, lowering my hand from where it had instinctively reached up to clutch at my empty locket. I was prepared to ask him just what he was hoping to prove by practically kicking the door off its hinges when I noticed the distraught look on his face. I took a momentary pause, concern immediately taking over, but it was long enough for him to brush past me and rush up the stairs to our top level.

"What the-"

"Cotton," I interrupted what was sure to be a foul exclamation from my cousin as my twin entered our home. His snow-white hair was covered by his hat, head tilted low and eyes shifty as he stepped over the threshold. I rushed to him, grabbing his upper arms. "Cotton what happened?"

"We found Skunk Head," he whispered lowly, not looking me in the face as he shifted his feet awakrdly. Doing a quick once over of his form, I noticed a stack of papers clutched in his pale hand. I frowned, concern and worry beginning to ease in to panic.

"What do you mean?"

Wordlessly he lifted the crinkled stack of papers to me. Glancing between him and them quickly, I reached out and took them carefully, using the tips of my fingers as if the paper itself was poisonous. Shooting a worried look at Nancy as she came to stand beside me, I began fingering through the sheets. The print across the top of each page read '**WANTED**'. My blood ran cold.

"Oh my God," Nancy whispered as we recognized faces of distant and close kin and friends on every flier. Fingers shaking, I moved quickly to the table, putting the papers down and beginning to spread them out so I could see them all at once. I sat back, Nancy standing over my shoulder as I stared in horror at the table.

**Wanted:  
**_Johnson Hatfield,  
$275 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
Jim Vance,  
$450 Reward_

**Wanted:  
**_Valentine Hatfield,  
$200 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
Plyant Mahon,  
$75 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
Doc D Mahon,  
$75 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
Selkirk McCoy  
$85 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
Tom "Skunk Head" Wallace,  
$150 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
Robert E Hatfield,  
$175 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
Bill Dempsey,  
$75 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
Anderson "Devil Anse" Hatfield,  
$500 Reward_

**Wanted:**_  
William "Cap" Hatfield,  
$300 Reward_

"They'll kill us all," Nancy whimpered frightenedly as I pushed myself away from the table. Pacing quickly and hand pressed to my forehead, I tried to vanish the Wanted Posters from my mind. It had not escaped my noticed that each was smeared with a crusty brown substance that could only be blood and from Will's stormy entrance, and Cotton's vague explanation, I could only wager a guess whose it was.

"Tom's dead," I stammered aloud, not halting my panicked pacing before the table. Nancy had taken a seat, staring blanking into space as Cotton remained at his spot by the door. I paced on furiously. "Skunk Head's dead." My voice hitched. "They killed him."

"They've put bounties on their heads," Nancy observed absently, "The McCoys." I stopped, my breath coming in short, panicky gasps as I tried to wrap my head around this new development. Apparently the McCoys had made the next move.

"People are goin' to come cross state lines to collect those rewards," I revealed grimly. Nancy turned to me, fear clear in her eyes as she held four of the fliers in her slender hands. I guessed they were the ones showing her pa and brothers. "It won't be safe here for us anymore."

"Y'all are safer up here in the hills than Uncle Anse and the others," Nancy pointed out, standing at last from the seat she had shakily taken while looking over the papers. She still clutched her family's posters. Her eyes looked steely. "But if you really don't feel safe you can come stay with me and John."

"In Kentucky?" I asked incredulously, shooting her a look that said she should have known better. "Will would not make it two days."

"I was talkin' 'bout you and Cotton."

Her words hit me like a bullet between the ribs and I stepped back in shock. I stared at her in disbelief, not thinking it possible for her to truly be suggesting what I thought she was suggesting. A white hot rage had boiled in my got just at the thought. Leaving Will when times were dangerous. It was absolutely out of the question. My eyes squinted into slits.

"I would never leave William here," I hissed between clenched teeth, my voice icier than I ever recalled it being. She clearly saw the resolve and fury in my eyes because she backed down without another word, turning her back to me and taking Cotton by the hand to exit through the front door. I stared after them, body aching from how stiffly I was holding myself.

Once they were gone, I spared the table one last glance before rushing up the stairs after William. We had spare rooms up here, but besides Cotton's they were untouched and so I bypassed them heading straight to the bedroom we shared. The door was closed and as I gripped the handle, I used my free hand to knock lightly before pushing it open. I immediately spotted Will on his knees on the side of the bed, head lowered over his folded in what I assumed was prayer until I saw his shoulders shaking.

"Will," I sighed, coming further into the room and taking to my knees beside my husband. I heard a muffled sniffle and felt my heart break as I stared helplessly at him.

"He was my best friend," he muttered into our bedding, not lifting his head as his shoulders rose and fell in shuddering movements. Reaching out, I wrapped my arms around his middle and pulled myself close to him.

"I know," I whispered soothingly, chin resting over his shoulder. A stifled sob left him and I rubbed my cheek against his back, hugging him as tightly as I was able so that he knew I was here for him. "I know."

Huffing, he sniffed loudly, finally raising his face from the bed. Craning his neck to look over his shoulder at me, he breathed deeply. I had never seen William cry since his eye had gone foggy and I was nearly surprised to see that the blind eye still leaked tears just like its unharmed twin. The sight of those tears set my own eyes to watering and I chewed on my lip as Will turned around in my embrace. He leaned against the edge of the bed, hugging me to his chest now.

"Did you see the posters?" he asked after a period of dejected silence. His voice was thick and I suspected he was still very emotional despite having the appearance of having gathered himself. I nodded in response to his question. "They'll be comin' for us soon." Silence. "It won't be safe for you here."

"I don't care," I mumbled, burying my face in his chest. His beating heart sent vibrations straight through me and I guessed if the moment wasn't so tense I could fall asleep to the rhythm.

"What about Cotton?"

I took a moment to seriously contemplate my answer to this. There was nothing I would not do to keep my brother safe, but I could not even stand the _thought _of leaving William to flee to safety with Cotton. At the same time, I knew I would be desperately unhappy if I sent Cotton on without me and stayed behind with my husband. The only logical thing to do was keep together. If one left, we all left. If one stayed, we all stayed.

"We're a family," I declared at last, bringing a hand up to rest beside my face on Will's chest. "We'll go where you go."

I felt him nod before picking up my hand to press a quick kiss to my palm, his mustache tickling the sensitive skin. "Alright," he sighed. "We stay together."

We stayed cuddled up together like that for a few more hours, him eventually describing how they had found Skunk Head down at the yard. By the time we roused ourselves to go downstairs to seek out Cotton and Nancy, the birthday cake I had slaved over was ruined.


	16. On Notice

**Forgive my insanely long absence, but my recording of the show was deleted and I didn't want to risk straying from the story, but now I bought the DVDs and the updates will be coming again. ****Hopefully just as rapidly as before. ****This chapter probably won't seem crucial to the story, but it leads into other important matters and deals with a scene from the series, so just bear with me. **

West Virginia, 1886

"I hear the man that killed Tom is called Bad Frank, or something of the like," Nancy informed me as we strolled idly along the edge of the Tug. Her arm was looped loosely through my own, her head leaned in close to mine so that I might hear her over the babbling of the low river. A ways ahead Cotton was skipping stones, or attempting too. I kept an eye on him, but knew Uncle Anse had set up men along this border so that none of us would be caught on our own like Skunk Head had.

The last few months since the body had been found had been tense for all Hatfield kin. Just like I had predicted, men had come from all walks of life looking to put a bullet in my family members. The McCoys were never far from my mind in these frigid days when the snow was just beginning to stick to the ground. Whenever I wandered through the woods surrounding my home I felt as if eyes were on me and it shook me down to the bone. It was a rare day when I went anywhere without William and Cotton-Top was strictly forbidden from traveling unaccompanied. I would not end up like Sarah Staton; burying my brother while his killers walked free.

"I reckon no one calls him that to his face," I sniffed, nose red from the frosty air as I stepped carefully over the muddied ground, eyes constantly glancing to the surrounding foliage.

"And I reckon never twice," Nancy conceded, a low chuckle shaking her chest. Her hair was pulled back in its usual braid, slung over her shoulder like a shawl to ward of the chilled breeze.

Despite the risk, Nancy continued to visit with us when John was working. That could not be said for many of her siblings and certainly not her mother. I appreciated the act greatly, for it would have grown lonely up in the hills without her dazzling company. I suspected, however, that she made the trip to ward off her own loneliness more than my own. I was just about to convey these thoughts and concerns to her when there was a splattering of gunfire that pierced the silence of the area. I gasped, yanking Nancy in close and unthinkingly reaching my hand out to my brother who had remained ducked down by the rivers edge, a look of shock upon his face. The shots had come from disturbingly close by.

"Stay down, Cotton," I told him urgently, my voice almost drowned out by the scramble of small animals vacating the area in fright. Nancy and I were squatted down now as well, eye level to surrounding bushes as we tried to figure out if we had just heard friendly fire or the beginnings of an attack.

"Maybe it was Daddy," Nancy whispered to me, her words turning into wisp-like steam before her face. I shifted, knowing this could be true. Uncle Anse more than any of the others, had been targeted by bounty hunters. There was another loan shot and I knew we could not stay here forever. Calling my brother to my side, I linked his and Nancy's arms and told them to stay put.

"Where you goin'?" Cotton questioned, barely visible brow puckered in confusion. I shushed him.

"To see who that was," I answered, already making my way towards the bend before us, my winter boots slipping in the mud.

"Be careful, Abi."

Nancy's warning met my back as I crept deftly along the river bank, keeping low to the ground and avoiding dryer twigs and branches. Not ten yards from where I had left my kin, I could hear mumbled voices and the thumping of horse hooves. The group had nearly been upon us. Stepping away from the bank and into the foliage, I pressed my mouth into the crook of my arm, hiding my breath as I continued on towards where we had heard the gunfire. I had learned this trick from going on hunts with Will and Uncle Jim. You hid your breath so animals would not be able to spot it from a distance and flee.

I reckoned the group were just beyond the treeline now, as I could hear their voices clearly and took pause.

"Bounty hunters," came an all too familiar voice, gruff from years of smoking and general miss-care. "Worse kinda trash." As I peaked around the trunk of my hiding spot, I witnessed my Uncle Jim throw a bloodied piece of paper from his hand. It fluttered down to rest upon the corpse of one of three men lain in the mud. My eyes widened and I stepped out into the semi-clearing, no longer minding my footing and letting twigs snap loudly neath my feet.

"What happened?" I asked, ignoring how every man raised a gun at me in shock of my presence. Will angrily shoved down the barrels of those who did not lower them immediately and tramped over to my side.

"What are you doin' out here by yourself?" he asked, clearly irate as he did a quick sweep of my body to make sure I suffered no injury. I leaned towards him slightly, casting the dead bodies worried glances as, from atop his steed, Uncle Anse huffed and shook his head at me, pipe hanging from its usual spot at the corner of his mouth.

"I ain't alone," I swore, looking back over my shoulder in the direction I had come. Will followed my gaze. "I was takin' a walk with Cotton and Nancy when we heard the guns-"

"You should _not_ be this far from the hills," my husband cut across me gruffly, mustache tilted in annoyance. I gawked, pulling away with my hands on my hips and a firm look leveled at him. I knew he was only being concerned for my safety, but I was not about to waste my days away cooped up in our home with nothing to do and no one to talk to. I told him as such and he rolled his one good eye at me, taking me by the elbow and helping me across the slick terrain to stand surrounded by the others.

"Are Cotton and Nancy safe?" my uncle and father-in-law questioned when I explained to him how I had found them. I answered that they were. "Did the three of you run into anyone while you were out?" I answered that we had not.

"These bastards are comin' from all over," Uncle Jim spit, causing me to frown and shift closer to Will who had his good eye fixed on one of the dead men. "Won't be able to take _idle strolls _much longer, angel."

"Cap," Devil Anse caught his son's attention, "Get your paper and quill...Time to put Randal McCoy on notice." Will nodded as his father began to depart, the others following to retrieve their own mounts from wherever they were concealed. When they had all given us their backs, he turned to me, frown not half so severe as one his father would have given, but still enough to set me to sighing.

"I can't stand bein' inside all day," I argued as he motioned me to walk ahead of him back to where Cotton and Nancy hid. "You're never around anymore."

"It's safer that way," he explained, steadying me with a firm hand on my lower back. I sighed again, eyes cast low to the mud as we continued on.

The last few months since the body of Skunk Head had been found had been tense for all Hatfield kin, but sometimes I thought it may be worse for people like myself and Aunt Lavicy. Sure, the men had to always be on guard and looking over their shoulders, but we had to sit inside all day worrying about whether or not those men would come home. Some days all I did was sit and stare out of our solitary front window, waiting to hear the hooves of Will's horse on his way back from the yard or from patrolling the Tug for bounty hunters. It was too dangerous to just go down to the shops like I used to, and not rational to try and cross into Kentucky without an escort.

"Well, I still do not like it," I grumbled lowly as we stepped back onto the path I had been walking with my cousin and brother. The two of them were still hunched over where I had left them, but straightened when they spotted Will and I.

"What happened?" Nancy breathed when she reached us, throwing herself into William's arms as Cotton-Top attempted to squeeze the life out of me.

"Bounty hunters," Will informed, his entire countenance growing dark as he no doubt recalled the men they had left rotting in the mud beds. He explained to us briefly how they had been suspecting them for some time and that the patrols around the Tug were more than likely going to be doubled. I grumbled lowly to myself, thinking this would simply mean more time where Will would not be home.

"Was John with you?" Nancy asked, seemingly out of the blue. I shot a concerned look to the side of my cousin's face over my brother's head. She was looking up at William with wide, searching eyes and a queazy feeling settled into my stomach as he answered her.

"No, why?"

My young cousin deflated, her slender shoulders sagging heavily beneath her coat. She mumbled that there was no reason for her question, and Will seemed to believe her as he urged us to go right back the way we had come and go take refuge with Lavicy and the girls since it would be too dangerous to make it all the way back into the hills ourselves. I reckoned it would be dark by then anyhow and bothered to wonder just what I had been thinking when proposing this walk. Maybe Will was right to keep me locked up all day.

"What about you?" I asked, making a mental note to question Nancy on her strange demeanor once we were not in the company of her older brother.

"I gotta go help bring those bodies back into Kentucky and put Old Ran'l on notice," he explained, leaning over to place a sweet kiss to my temple. "I won't get nothin' done if I think y'all are out here puttin' yourselves in danger, so march straight to my parent's, you hear?"

I moved to argue that I was not a child to be ordered around, but as I caught the look on my husband's face I backed down and agreed with a heavy heart. It was easy to see Will was stressed, and tired, and still beaten up about his best friend's death. I did not want to add another load to his shoulders when it was so easy to simply comply. I hated to leave him and the others out there, but I knew my kin would not rest until they felt justice was done. With one last kiss and a word of warning from Will, we departed, Cotton tucked into my side and Nancy clinging to my hand as we made are way back up the river. I thought back to when we would take walks like this when we were all younger. Things had been simpler then and the two of them had not clung to me in fear but in love. I hugged them both closer now, wishing for those days again.

"Nancy," I broke the silence of the last fifteen minutes as we trekked up a particularly steep hill I did not remember trekking down.

"Yes?"

"Why did you think John would be with Will and the others?"

My question threw my usually talkative sister-in-law into silence and she remained there for an extended period of time. I did not repeat myself, for she had heard me, and I did not rush her answer, for I knew it would come. We continued on into quiet, me helping Cotton navigate the large hill until we cleared the top. Squinting through the bare tree branches above, I could see a billow of smoke and knew we must be approaching my aunt and uncle's home. We continued on another few minutes before Nancy finally spoke up. Cotton was skipping along ahead of us.

"This morning," she began vaguely, her eyes far off and jaw clenched tight against the cold. "John said he could not accompany me across the Tug because he had to go on patrol with my father and brothers...he left early."

"You crossed the Tug _alone_?" I was absolutely livid at this. In these dangerous times, any kin of the Hatfield clan was a sitting duck if spotted alone and though we did not appear on any Wanted fliers, I had no doubt in my mind that any Hatfield woman would receive a worse punishment if recognized by someone with ill will. Thinking of my pale, wisp of a cousin traveling between the territories unaccompanied sent me into a white hot rage. "How could he even _think_ that-"

"Abigail," Nancy spoke over me, having stopped three paces back. I turned to her, face drawn taught in anger and confusion until I saw the beginnings of tears in her eyes. I hastened to her side.

"Nancy," I cooed lowly, throwing arm and shawl over her shoulders as they began to quack. "Why are you takin' on so?"

"Abigail," she repeated, sniffles and hiccups obscuring her speech, "I-I think John is havin' an affair."

Tears tracked down my pretty cousin's face and I could feel my heart break for her as she surrendered herself to her sobs. I hugged her close to my chest not knowing how to bring comfort to her at a time like this. If I were being honest, I believed that John Vance probably was having an affairs, though I would never be able to wager why he would do such a thing. Nancy was kind, and agreeable, and I was not blowing smoke when I said my cousin was beautiful. John Vance would have to be a damned fool to ever carry on with another woman, but a damn fool he appeared to be.

"W-What am I g-gonna _do_?" she wept into my shoulder, flinging her arms around my middle desperately. I shushed her, cradling her head gently and swaying my body in a soothing motion.

"Don't worry none," I told her, clearing my throat over the lump that had formed from her pain. "Tonight, you'll stay with us in one of our spare rooms. Tomorrow, you'll go gather your plunder and move it all back into our cabin. After that, we'll go down to Uncle Wall, and get you a divorce written up, okay?"

She cried harder but I felt her not into my chest, not wanting to argue with me in the least. I cooed and shushed her, not knowing the pain of knowing you were going to leave the first man you ever loved who apparently did not love you back. From a ways ahead, I saw my brother staring back at us, head tilted in confusion and feet twisted into the mud. I nodded him on to our Aunt Lavicy's, knowing Nancy would not want to be so broken up when she broke the news to her mother and sisters. When he had turned and continued on I looked out into the distance, taking note of the baring trees and frosty ground. Winter was coming fast and with the snow came more trouble for my family to overcome, but I knew if we stuck together, we would overcome.

"I don't want my family to know about the adultery," Nancy huffed into my chest after a time. I was pulled from my musings and frowned down at her. A light snow had begone to fall and it clung to her damp lashes, reflecting the shine off her eyes.

"Nancy , what John did is-"

"I love him, Abi," she whispered brokenly, tears stained cheeks tinted pink in the frosty air. She looked up at me pleadingly, seeming only a child of four again with her thumb stuck between her lips, unwilling to speak. "I love him and I don't want my brothers hurtin' him none if they find out. Please, Abigail."

I thought about it.

It would mean lying to William which I had never done and never planned to do. It would mean knowing John Vance would get off free for breaking my little cousin's heart. It would mean having to see John Vance walk down the street with one whore or another and having to pretend it meant nothing to me.

I thought about it.

"I don't wanna kick up no more row with our family right now..." I began slowly, petting Nancy's head lightly as she clung to me. "So I suppose...I won't say nothin' to 'em." The hug she held me in then was probably the strongest her slender frame could manage. I hugged back, soaking up the warmth while it was still available.

"Thank you, Abi," she breathed into my clothes. "I knew I could depend on you, ever since we was little." I nodded, holding her even closer to my body as I remembered the little girl with plaited hair. I told her would always be able to depend on me, and we walked the last stretch up to my aunt and uncle's cabin. My brother was already inside, recounting the story of our walk with far more peril than what had been to my younger cousins who were all listening with rapt attention. Lavicy saw us enter out of the corner of her eye and hurried to us, pulling us into separate hugs before inquiring after our health.

"BANG!" went Cotton's loud voice as he imitated the gunfire. Little Elias and Detroit jumped in surprise, the three year old Joseph not seeming disturbed in the least. My mother-in-law looked frayed around the edges as she massaged a rough pattern into her temples.

"Are Anderson and William alright?" she asked me lowly, keeping a constant motherly watch over her children across the room. Since baby Rosada was not in her arms, I assumed she had been put down for a nap before our entrance.

"They're fine, Aunt Lavicy," I assured, reaching out to grasp her wrist lightly. My aunt and I did not always see eye to eye, and certainly not when it came to Will, but we both worried after his health and I could tell we were in very much the same situation as of late.

"Good, good," she breathed brushing a hand down her apron in a fidgety manner. "I can't imagine what Anderson could want Cap to write out for him, but I'm guessin' they won't be back for some time." My heart fell. I hadn't guessed at that. "The two a you are welcome to stay the night in the girl's room if it gets too late."

"Thanks, Mama," Nancy took the offer, shooting me a look that pleaded me not to mention the conversation we had just had. I nodded discreetly and also accepted the offer to stay the night. I had no idea when William would return and did not take a shining to the thought of spending too much time in the cabin without him. It felt strange.

"I'll help you with dinner," I offered, moving to pull on one of the older woman's spare aprons as Nancy excused herself upstairs. "Whenever they do come back, it's gon' be an army of 'em."

Lavicy huffed, though I could hear the faintest hint of amusement in her exhale. It was no secret that my aunt had her hands full most days feeding the eight of her children whom were still at home, her brothers-in-law, Johnse when he stopped by, Selkirk McCoy when _he_ stopped by, Jim Vance, and her own husband. I could not imagine that the cleanup was much easier either, but I was glad to see my aunt seemed to hold no resentment in her frame. No indicator that she begrudged her kin from constantly feeding off what should have been going to her immediate family. Though we did not always see eye to eye, I was not angry to admit that I looked up to my aunt. She was like an immovable stone that the rest of the family leaned on when things became too much.

I aspired to be something like that for my family someday. For my children and for William if he let me. For now, I knew I would just have to settle with being that person for Nancy who needed it so dearly. I was not sure how I would broach the subject of her moving in with William, but I also knew this was the only way to handle the situation. A woman who had been married and lain with a man could not go back to living with her family and sharing a humble bed with her sisters. It just did not make a lick of sense. No, Nancy would stay with us and we would just have to make a little more room in our lives to accommodate her.

I just hoped I would be able to explain this reasoning to William without revealing John Vance's betrayal.


	17. Pipe in Mouth, Prick in Hand

West Virginia, 1886

After leaving Abigail, Cotton, and my sister off at the Tug, I returned to where we had left the bounty hunters to find my kin already strapping the bastards back on to their own mounts. My father observed everything with a cold indifference, and I could tell he was mulling over our options in his mind. The bounty McCoy had placed on all our heads was bringing forth all manner of vagrants that did not care who they killed as long as his face was on a flier somewhere. It got to be so bad that we couldn't even go out hunting alone anymore; every son of a bitch with a gun was high tailing it across the Tug to pick us off one by one. Luckily no one had been pinned since Skunk Head.

"What you wanna do Anse?" Uncle Jim spat into the mud, shifting his weight lazily as the last of the bounty hunters was secured over his horse. My father hummed lightly, eyes wandering the surrounding area, probably looking for more.

"This can't keep goin' on unacknowledged," he murmured around his pipe, "Randal needs to know we mean business…and that we will not be put down without a fight." He removed his pipe then, spitting onto the icy ground as he turned to look at me. "You got paper and a quill yet?"

"Yeah, Pa," I nodded off to my saddle. "Just tell me what ya wanna say." My old man showed his gratitude by sticking his pipe back in his mouth and turning his mount away. I took my cue to follow and quickly jumped onto my own steed, moving to ride alongside my father. Pipe still in mouth he leant over slightly and pointed out a crude path with his finger. "I want this document to be as official as possible," he stated, eyes far off in a thought that I was not party to. I nodded never the less, reaching into my saddle bag to pull out writing supplies. As I smoothed out a sheet of paper over my thigh, he stopped me and motioned over to Selkirk McCoy. "Gimme one a those Wanted posters."

"Sure thing," Selkirk obliged, reaching over into one of the dead men's pockets and pulling out a bloodied flier that he passed to my father. He glanced at the front momentarily –it was the poster for Victoria's husband, Plyant Mahon- and handed it to me, leant over his knee as he began to dictate the letter.

"My name is Anderson Hatfield," he began gruffly, pronouncing his words around his pipe, "and I am not one individual, but many. We hereby notify you that if you invade our state to take of _kill _Hatfields…we will charge it to you." I glanced up from my writing, but my daddy would not meet my eye. "Your hides will pay the penalty." He stopped there and I read the letter back to him. When he was satisfied, I made it out to the McCoy lawyer on his commands and attached it to the sleeve of one of the deceased.

"What now, Anse?" my Uncle Lias asked then, wiping his brow tiredly and squinting off into the distance. I reckoned it would be dark soon, and was eager to return to Abigail's side. Jim Vance strike me dead if I ever said so to anyone but her.

My father was obviously still deep in thought over some issue or the other –Lord knew he had many of them- but still managed to focus on his kin long enough to finish the matter at hand. "I want those bodies tide off at the edges of Kentucky," he ordered, rousing his mount from its lazy grazing to begin the ride back home. "No one crosses the border though. No exceptions."

Selkirk had offered to tie off the bodies, and after giving him a good spot to do it, we all departed, the sun setting at our backs as we road. Jim carried on conversation for a time, but eventually he left to head in the direction of his own home promising to meet us at the tavern later if we chose. Good Lias did the same and it was quiet out then, the usual clamor of smaller animals dead into the lowering temperatures, and the usual sounds of gunfire absent since hunting was rarely an option anymore.

I steamed inwardly on how much the McCoys had already managed to take from us while still sending in others to do their dirty work. I was fit to be tied most days when reminded of Skunk Head's murder, and I admit I was beginning to be an ornery son of a bitch. The only thing that kept me calm half the time, was knowing I got to go home to Abi and just relax knowing she had been safe and sound in the cabin all day. Seeing her appear at the outskirts of our territory today had bothered me even more than I let on and I was determined to have a firm talking with that girl as soon as we were alone.

"Hey! Cap and Uncle Anse are back!"

When we finally reached the cabin, the sun was long down, and it had just been me and my daddy for a good fifteen minutes. He did not say much these days, usually deep in thought, and I wondered if he would ever let the rest of us in on whatever was so damn important to keep him shut up in the time when we needed to hear him most. Cotton-Top's exclamation had brought my mother and siblings to the porch, each of them speaking up at once as daddy and I climbed the steps to stand amongst them. I could not make out one question from the other, but from what it sounded like, Cotton had told the little ones of some grand adventure involving himself, Nancy, and Abi down by the Tug while bounty hunters were afoot. We had shushed these questions, letting all present know that it had not been as exciting as it sounded.

Sifting through the crowd of my siblings, I quickly searched the front room for Abigail and spotted her in the kitchen area, face pulled into a grimace as she attempted not to burn the stew my mother had been slaving over. After dropping my hat on the dining table, I slunk up behind her being unnecessarily quiet. She knew we had returned from the commotion the others had just cause, but I was glad when she did not jumped at all as my arms slid slowly around her waist. She knew only I would dare do that.

"Miss me?" I teased, feeling ten times better in her company than I had out of it. She giggled, not abandoning the pot as she answered that she had. I rested my chin over her shoulder, letting my chin dig into her collar as she continued to stir the contents of the pot.

"Will?" she spoke up after a time. I hummed to let her know I was listening. "Can I talk to you about something…privately?" This caught my attention, and I pulled away, giving my wife a strange look. Abigail was all about family, and never felt the need to keep anything from anyone in ours. Anything she could say to me could be said in front of our siblings, our cousins, our parents, anyone. Her wanting to speak with me alone was new.

The look she was giving me concerned me, however, and I agreed, helping her rid herself of my mother's apron before leading her out onto the porch. My parents and siblings had all flocked back inside by now and we were alone just like she had wanted. I leant against the porch railing, watching in confusion as she began to pace. She rung her hands nervously and I wondered what could possibly have her so worked up.

"Well," I had prompted, "What'd you wanna talk about?" She immediately paused in her pacing, back to me and stiff as a board. I moved away from the railing and approached her from behind. I could see that she shivered slightly from the cold and fought the urge to wrap my arms around her. "Abi?"

"Remember, after my daddy died," she began suddenly, turning to face me, soft hair whipping around her oval face, "and Cotton came to stay with us?" I nodded. I obviously remembered. "I never really asked you, I just sorta said he'd be movin' in." I shrugged.

"He needed somewhere to stay," I reasoned thoughtlessly, even though the tiniest touch of annoyance still plagued me on nights when I could not know my wife the way a man knows a woman because Cotton would not get himself to bed. "And he's kin so-"

"Right!" Abi cut across me excitedly, seeming to grasp onto whatever it was I had said, "and when kin need help you offer it, even if it's inconvenient at times…right?"

I felt that this was a trick question, but could see no way to avoid it. I shifted my weight uncomfortably.

"I suppose so."

"Good," she sighed as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Picking up her skirts, she made to make her way passed me back into the house. "So Nancy will move all her things in tomorrow."

"WHAT!?" I shouted, hands on my hips in aggravation, one hanging loosely off the holster for my gun. Abigail rolled her eyes, glancing up towards the porch of my parent's home, moistening her lips with a quick flick of her tongue. The sun had gone down some time ago and only the lantern light from within allowed me to see my wife's pale eyes as they observed my boots nervously.

"It won't be for that long," she insisted, wrapping her arms around her middle. Keeping her warm was the farthest thing from my mind as I considered that we would now be having _two_ people staying in our home with us. I rubbed my hand roughly over my face, growling agitatedly as I imagined living with _Nancy _again.

"Abi, what was you thinkin'?" I questioned irately, throwing my hands up to the heavens and fixing her a look with my good eye. She guffawed as if it were the dumbest question she had ever heard.

"I was thinkin' exactly what you said," she insisted, waving one of her hands at me vaguely. I frowned in confusion. "Nancy's kin and needs help so-"

"So you invite her to stay with us even though we already got Cotton livin' under our roof?" My voice was rising slightly and I fought to keep it down, but the stress of the last few months with the fact that I had a wife that just could not deny taking in members of our family was beginning to really rub me the wrong way and I was irritable. Apparently my tone did not sit right with one Abigail Hatfield, because she was suddenly very red in the face as I had not seen her since we were young and she leveled a finger at my chest, jabbing angrily with each word.

"My brother needed somewhere to stay and you said-"

"Cotton-Top, fine, but _Nancy_?" I interrupted, slapping her hand away. Of course not hard enough to hurt, but I was not about to be bullied into letting my baby sister move into the home I shared with my wife. "She's married, it ain't even proper to-"

"Do you really think I woulda asked her to stay with us if she was gonna be married much longer?" she hissed, lowly, bringing her voice down so that no one inside could hear. My brow furrowed in irritated confusion as I backed away, rubbing tiredly at my eyes.

"What're you talkin' 'bout?" I huffed not knowing where this argument could possibly be going. Nancy had only been married one year less than Abigail and myself, and John seemed like a standup guy even if he was related to our Uncle Jim. "Why wouldn't she be married?"

Abigi looked ready to bite back with a powerful witty remark, but suddenly, her eyes glazed and her mouth snapped shut with an audible click of her teeth. I raised my eyebrow at her, waiting for a reply, but none came. She leaned back from where she had put her face close to mine and had the gall to look embarrassed. I pressed on.

"Well?"

"I…I cannot say," she mumbled at last, bringing her dainty hands together before her and bowing her head. I scoffed at this, shifting my weight from one booted foot to the other as I leaned in towards her.

"I think you can, but you won't," I challenged, knowing exactly how Abi and my sister worked. It was always a lot of whispers and giggling with those two and then shutting up when anyone that wasn't Cotton walked in. That was all well and fine when it did not directly affect me, but I was not about to open my home to one of my brattiest siblings without some sort of explanation. When my wife was still mum on the matter I leaned in close to sniff in her ear. "She ain't movin' in without an excuse."

With that I was prepared to move around her back into the house, matter settled, but Abigail's head picked up at this. A spark was burning in her eyes as she put her body before mine, blocking the doorway. I raised my brow at her.

"I'm your wife," she bargained, staring up into my face. Though taller than her stunted brother, Abigail was still not quite so tall as myself. "You know I have a reason, don't ya think you can trust me?"

With a scoff, I shook my head at her, hands once again finding home on my hip and holster. "I'm your husband," I countered, "don't you think you _should_ trust me?" Again her eyes glazed and her mouth snapped shut, and I knew she heard the truth and reason in my words. Apparently she was not in the mood to listen to either this night as she pulled away from me, mouth set in a grim line and brow furrowed. I realized perhaps for the first time that this had become an argument. The first real one we had had as man and wife. I shifted.

"William, you are bein' unfair," she bit out, "and a mighty blow hard." This statement seemed to shock her as much as it did me, but I overlooked her wide eyed stare as I grumbled lowly to myself for what felt like the hundredth time this month.

"I don't give a rat's ass," I snapped back, disregarding how my wife's pretty little face scrunched with the use of profanity, "It's my home, and I-"

"It's _our_ home," she growled venomously, stepping once again into my space so that we stood chest to chest. For a moment I was captured in how her flaming cheeks went pale in the darkness and how her sky blue eyes seemed to grow dimmer in her irritation. She was beautiful. It was a beauty wasted, however, as she spat at my boots for the first time since she was eight years old and made to turn back into the cabin.

"Hey, you two." My Uncle Jim's greeting was covered up by the sound of Abi slamming the door that used to be mine in my face. I cursed lowly, turning around as Jim's chuckle advanced on my back. "Uh oh," he rumbled low in his gut, "Trouble in paradise?"

"It's nothin'," I spat out, voice gruff with anger as I heard the distinct sound of my wife's tiny feet stomping across the bottom level of my childhood home. "Abi's just bein' ornery."

"You look pretty ornery there yourself, son," Jim noted, chewing slowly on his tobacco as if deep in thought. I rolled my one good eye, heaving a martyr's sigh as I leaned against the porch railing. This day had just gone all to shit.

It was not as if I did not want to take care of my baby sister. I would do anything for Nancy, and everyone this side of the Tug knew it, but a man could only take so many kin intruding on him and his wife's private time. I loved Cotton like my own brother, but he was beginning to feel more like a son with how we had to always make sure everything we did was the right thing for Cotton, and had to be sure Cotton was not feeling left out. So many things I had to change just to make Abigail happy, and I always felt I would do it all again, but when actually faced with having to _do it all __**again**_, I felt it I was in my right to take pause.

And this was my sibling we were talking about, not Abi's. My sibling who still had both parents to help support her in the absence of a husband. This thought struck home and I wondered just what the hell had happened in that marriage to send Nancy running to her cousin. I thought about asking Jim this, but figured he gave as much a piss as his dog and would not want to be bothered with the comings and goings of another one of his kin. Even now he did not seem to care greatly what had come between Abigail and I as he dismounted.

"I had come here to ask your daddy if he wanted to head down to the tavern," he explained, pulling a flask from one of his inner pockets. I wondered what was the use of one, or the other –a flask or a tavern- when you already had one, or the other –a flask or a tavern. "But now I'm thinkin' you could serve from a drink more than Anse."

"No thanks, Uncle Jim," I waved him off, already trying to think up the words I would approach Abi with when I went back inside.

"Boy, I wasn't askin' you," Jim guffawed, spitting an ugly wad of tobacco into the dirt at the edge of the bottom step. "Get your hat and let's go, damnit."

Knowing I could not argue him off of the idea, I sighed and stomped back into the cabin, calling out my plans to the ceiling so that my mother and Abigail might hear where I was off to. Nancy sat with Cotton and the other children off in the corner of our main room, telling them some story our mother had no doubt told her at that age. Elizabeth and Mary sat slightly away from the other, speaking lowly while Beth plaited Mary's hair. I wagered Elliott and Robert E were off wreaking havoc somewhere, probably with Margaret Schindler and Mariah Wolford.

"Hey, Cap," Cotton called as I snatched up my hat, separating himself from the others, eyes all bright and hair a mess. "Can I come?" I was of course going to tell my snowy haired cousin that a whore house was no place for him, but Nancy butt in before I had the chance.

"Abigail won't like that," she sang lowly, not raising her eyes from the hand game she was playing with Detroit. A hot anger fired up in my belly as I glared at my sister. It was her fault Abigail and I were fighting in the first place, and I did not appreciate the small figurine of a girl telling me what my wife would and would not like. I turned to my brother-in-law, hand planted firmly on his shoulder.

"Sure ya can, Cotton," I said loudly enough for Nancy to hear. "You're twenty now, no reason you can't come out with the rest of us."

"Oh boy!" the pale young man exclaimed, tripping over to snatch his own hat up from the ground beside Nancy who had fixed me with a shocked and angered look.

"Will, what is you thinkin'?" she questioned lowly, shooting furtive eyes towards the staircase. "Abigail will have your head." I shifted, thinking of the rage that would boil in Abi's eyes when she found out what I had done. I did not budge on the matter.

"I'll do as I see fit," I replied coolly, fixing my hat over my hair as Cotton hurried me on from the front door. Dropping brief partings to my other siblings, I followed my albino cousin out on to the porch and saddled up beside him.

"Let's ride," Uncle Jim barked once we were all astride.

We made it to the tavern in town in good time, the noise from inside spilling out into the streets as we tied our mounts. A scantily clad woman greeted my uncle warmly at the main door and I questioned whether or not bring Cotton had been a good idea. The woman turned to us as Jim entered, flashing a smile that was meant to be alluring but that set my teeth on edge. Lord, I wished I could just go crawling back to Abi.

"Come on in, boys," she cooed, reaching out a clawed hand to stroke Cotton's face. The boy was entrance. "We don't bite…unless you want us to." Cotton giggled at the woman's boldness and followed her in like a pup on a rope. I shook my head, knowing there'd be hell to pay if anything should happen to him, and followed.

The inside of the tavern was smoky and loud, men falling all over the place to chase the women that laughed wickedly, change purses dangling at their sides. I don't know why I was surprised to see my older brother staggering off towards the back, a particularly beautiful girl draped over his shoulder as if he were the damned richest man in there. He paid her no mind however, not even acknowledging his kin as he stumbled despondently through the establishment. I shook my head at him, making my way to the bar in the center of the bottom floor.

Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Cotton sat down across from Jim who already had a full bottle and shot glass in front of him. Turning back to the bar, I asked for a bottle of whiskey as well as a glass of milk for my cousin. Cotton may be twenty now, but I was not about to get him drunk inside a whore house. Abi would have my balls before I could even explain myself.

The milk came out first, and I took it to Cotton who was occupied watching Johnse flee the area, the young woman from earlier calling after him desperately. I set the glass down as she tripped over to our table, leaning against for support, her face stuck in a drunken grimace.

"I love Johnse Hatfield so much," she hiccupped. I turned back to the bar. "Why don't he see that?" The bar keep passed me my bottle just as Cotton's reply reached my ears.

"On account a you're a whore?" he asked innocently, bright eyes no doubt turned up to the woman in awed admiration that was not present in his words. I choked back a laugh, bringing the bottle to my lips so that might yank out the cork with my teeth.

"Better'n some McCoy _bitch_!" the girl spat, pushing away from the table roughly and nearly crashing into me. I raised my brow in bemusement as she flounced away. It was a wonder why my brother had so many girls chasing after him. There was nothing but rocks in that blonde head of his, and yet women flocked him as if it were gold. I shook my head, taking a quick shot.

"Cap," Jim said suddenly, not pulling his eyes from the candle burning on the table in front of us. "Put down the whiskey…make like nature calls." My blood boiled in anger. Clearly there was a bounty hunter somewhere in here interested in showing my hide to the McCoys. "Get my drift?"

I nodded, downing one more shot before standing up noisily. " Alright, I'ma find me a tree to water," I announced, hiking up my overalls as I made my exit. Jim continued talking to Cotton, no doubt trying to keep him docile since he had not caught on to what was happening.

I exited the place through the front, sniffing in the cold night air as I rounded the back. Nature really was calling at this point and as I spotted a tree just around the corner, I heard the tavern's door swing open and shut behind me. Bounty hunter. Worst kind of trash. I continued on, acting completely unawares of my pursuer, and undid my pants as I would any other night. It wasn't until I already had my prick in my hand and was making a yellow river that I heard the gun's hammer being pulled back behind me.

"William 'Cap' Hatfield." I turned, recognizing the man that had been sat a few tables away from us with his gun aimed at my chest. I raised my arms above my head nonchalantly, leaving my pecker out for the world to see. This man did not scare me.

"Yeah?"

"Button your dick, you vulgar bastard," he huffed at me. I shot the man a disinterested look, not changing position at all as I saw Jim begin to creep up behind him. "I'm arresting you for the murder of Tolbert, Phamer, and Bud McC-"

He did not get a chance to finish the cursed name as my Uncle Jim slammed down into his skull with a hatchet he had found nearby. I lowered my hands as his body fell, aiming a pleased sneer at the dumb man's corpse. Stepping slightly closer, I grabbed my tool again and continued what I had started, showering my would be arrester in my piss. I felt a wicked sort of satisfaction listening the splatterings of urine over his coat. Turning my eyes up to Jim I fixed him with a look and he just chuckled, not minding at all what I was doing.

"Wanna help me ride him to Kentucky?" Jim asked, fixing his hands against his suspenders as I finished my leak and buttoned up.

"Nah," I sniffed, glancing back towards the tavern where Cotton-Top waited, "I reckon I better be gettin' back to Abi."


	18. AN - Video Preview

: / / w w w. you tube watch ?v = KE QR b1 5r N6s

**If you take out all the spaces, this is a link to a video preview for this story. Would really appreciate it if all you fine readers could find the time to have a look at it. **

**Next chapter should be up within the next couple of days.**

**~Monica**


	19. A Hopeless Task

West Virginia, 1886

"You did _what_!?" I breathed between my teeth, hands fisted in my apron as I stared in shock up at my cousin who stood sheepishly in the threshold of my home.

"You heard me," Johnse bellyached, shifting around on his fancy boots. "I married Nancy McCoy."

"Jesus H. Christ, Johnse, have you gone plum crazy?" Nancy questioned from her spot at on my left. Just as I had said, she had moved her things out of John Vance's house the day after the bounty hunters had been killed and our Uncle Wall had written her up a divorce the day after that. She was Nancy Hatfield again and had been staying with Cotton and I for the last week. I would say she had been staying with Will, Cotton, and I, but the fact of the matter is we had not spoken after he returned the night of our fight having apparently taken my brother to a whore house. I still got a migraine some days when I remembered how I had screamed and raged at him, throwing any loose object that was within grabbing distance.

"Look, I love Nancy," Johnse defended, pointing to his own chest as he turned to face his sister. I groaned internally, feeling a pain shoot up behind my eyes as I moved to pinch the bridge of my nose.

"That's what you said about Roseanna," I grumbled, remembering the slight girl that could not have weighed more than a bundling of hay. She had turned out to be about as much trouble as I predicted she would be and then some. Still, I pitied the poor thing when I remembered that her baby had died. I wagered it would not be long before news of this union reached her and she was again broken by my foolhardy cousin.

Johnse looked wounded at the comment on Roseanna and ready to retort when he suddenly backed down, blowing a wisp of air from between his rosy lips. "Listen," he begged, looping Nancy and myself into his please, "Now I know you two are against Nancy-"

"That ain't God's truth," Nancy cut in immediately brushing off Johnse's hand where it had come to rest on her shoulder, "If anyone, Nancy's against all of us. Sneaky little-"

"Hobble your lip," I snapped at the younger girl, putting her slightly behind me as I fixed a regular scowl on Johnse. He had the decency to look somewhat ashamed. "Johnse," I pressed, "Quit beatin' the devil round the stump, and have out with it. What do you want?"

"I was wonderin' if you two could maybe make nice with Nancy," he spat out in a rush so that I nearly missed it. My jaw dropped as the sound of Nancy huffing reached my ears.

"Lord, but you have gone mad," the young man's sister growled at him over my shoulder. "Why would Abi and I want to make nice with some McCoy bitch just to end up with her bullets in our backs?"

"Hey that's my wife you're talkin' 'bout!" Johnse raged, ready to shove me aside to get at his sister, but I grabbed my riffle off its hang right at the side of our front door. It hung there for convenience in case anyone was not willing to step off my property as soon as told to do so.

"Watch yourself," I warned acidly, holding the weapon so that the barrel aimed up into Johnse's chin, "I will gut shoot anyone who tries to disrespect my house over this feud." I spoke the truth. The feud had already taken my father and freedom from me, I would not let it spill into my home. It did not matter who angered me, or their motives for stirring up trouble; I had this gun for a reason. Johnse backed up onto our front path, arms thrown out at his sides.

"Jesus, Abi," he breathed, spinning on the spot to saunter further away. I replaced the gun as he turned back to me, fingers laced behind his head in barely hidden frustration. "I'm just tryin' to be a good husband. Nancy got no friends here in West Virginia and she's proly lonelier than Jesus in the garden right now."

"Jesus had God with him in that garden," I informed my cousin, keeping my arms braced against my door frame, "But I do not reckon Nancy McCoy keeps the same company."

"Hatfield," Johnse corrected, arms falling back to his sides as he began to approach me again.

"We already got enough Nancy Hatfields," Nancy griped from her spot behind me. I fixed her with a pacifying gaze as Johnse returned to his original spot before me.

"Please," he said humbly, reaching an empty hand out to me, palm up. "All I'm askin' is you stop by every once and a while. Just to talk to her!"

I thought about it.

I knew the day Cotton had come home earlier in the week bragging about ferrying Nancy McCoy to Johnse's drip that more trouble was on the horizon. My cousin's shine was not the best in West Virginia, let alone Kentucky, and it made no sense that the sour young woman would trouble herself with the journey if she did not want something besides liquor. I recalled the bitter little girl Nancy had been when we were all growing up and the bitter woman she was today. It was obvious to see she held a major grudge against our family for her father's death even after all this time. I was not sure if I sympathized or not, but even if I did, I would not trust the girl as far as I could throw Jim Vance.

I thought about it.

"Fine," I conceded finally, eyes shifting warily to the forest at Johnse's back. He sighed, throwing his head back in relief before gathering me to his chest.

"Thanks, cousin," he breathed, pressing a quick kiss to my forehead, "Don't know what I'll e'er do to repay ya."

"I'm sure I'll think a somethin'," I promised him moodily as he pulled away, large smile plastered over his face. "Get on outta here before I change my mind."

With a quick tip of his hat and an exaggerated sneer at his sister, Johnse departed, riding back the way he had come no more than an hour ago. I closed the door, leaning against it with a heavy sigh as I reached up to stroke my necklace. These Hatfield children were dead set on wearing me out this week it seemed. Standing straight once more, I moved back to the dining table where I had been reading silently to myself upon Johnse's arrival. I flipped back to the page I had been on, not looking up as I heard Nancy come to sit beside me. We were alone in the house today, Will having been sleeping in his old room back at his parent's house, and Cotton off with him helping with some form of renovations. I really had no idea.

"_Indeed_," I began to read aloud from my new copy of _The Scarlett Letter_, "_the same dark question often rose into her mind, with reference to the whole race of womanhood. Was existence worth acceptin', even to the happiest among them?"_

"Abigail?"

I licked my lips just for something to do, fingering the pages of my book nervously as I acknowledged Nancy's interruption. "Yes?"

"What do you think's gon' happen to Johnse when everyone finds out about the McCoy girl?"

After a moment's hesitation, I closed the book again, sliding it away from me on the table and turning to face Nancy. I really did try to think of a good way to answer her, but I saw no positive way to state that I believed the Hatfield men would tan his hide from here to Tuesday once they heard. I sighed, shaking my head slowly as I leaned my head against my hand.

"I do not rightly know," I said somewhat honestly, "I do not reckon anyone will be too pleased about the matter." Nancy scoffed at this, irritated smile taking over her features as she became lost in some sort of daydream. I imagined it featured Johnse being victim to whatever our kin would do once they heard about the new Mrs. Hatfield. I pulled the book back towards me.

"_As concerned her own individual existence_," I went on, feeling Nancy lean into my side as if she were but a child again, "_she had long ago decided in the negative, and dismissed the point as settled. A tendency to speculation, though it may keep woman quiet, as it does men, yet makes her sad. She discerns, it may be, such a hopeless task before her._"

I read on long into the night, Nancy tucked into my side, and we did not mention Johnse or his new bride again. Cotton came home, mouth overflowing with the news of Uncle Wall coming to announce that he had married Johnse to Harmon McCoy's daughter yesterday morning. Nancy and I responded with appropriate scandalized looks, going so far as to ward off Cotton from visiting Johnse out at the drip. I sent him to bed none the wiser that Johnse had been there not hours before him. When the sun rose the next day, it rose to spy on me alone in my wedding bed, bone tired and near sick from missing William another night. Nancy made breakfast for us all, jabbering the entire time to Cotton on what she thought _exactly _made Nancy McCoy unfit to be a wife and possible mother.

"She's too slight for bearin' babies, see?" the now eighteen year old explained to my brother, angling her hands around her own hips. "She won't be able to carry none and then Johnse'll be plum outta luck. She's a skeleton!"

"Roseanna McCoy was real skinny, and she gave Johnse a baby," Cotton pointed out, resting his elbows against the tables no matter how many times I told him not to do so. Nancy took pause at this, probably surprised we had even told Cotton about little Sarah-Elizabeth. She shot me a panicked look, but I simply shrugged her away. There had been no harm in telling him at the time.

"Yes, well…that don't count," Nancy sniffed, turning back to her task of wiping down the counter. I was in the process of clearing the plates and had to fight back a groan at her answer. Such a statement would of course raise more questions from Ellison Mounts Junior.

"Why?"

"Cause Roseanna's baby wouldn't have been a Hatfield…if she had lived," Nancy explained gloomily.

"Why?"

"Cause she would not have carried the Hatfield name."

"Why?"

"Cause Johnse never married Roseanna and wasn't plannin' on it neither, Cotton-Top," I butt in finally, all but slamming the dishes down on the now clean counter. Nancy jumped, blush creeping up her neck as she realized the conversation she had just started with my brother. I wanted to give her a cold look, but was too tired to do so and simply shooed her away.

"Abigail?"

"Yes?" I called over my shoulder, not turning to look at what I knew would be a slightly confused expression on my brother's face. Instead I began to scrub the dishes from our breakfast clean, water in the basin having already been used for such work last night.

"Daddy never married the lady that had us."

"…No…he did not."

"And Johnse never married Roseanna."

"No, he did not."

"S'That make baby Elizabeth a bastard?" My hands stilled momentarily at this question, and from the corner of my eye, I saw Nancy turn her back to me ashamedly.

"I suppose so," I replied finally, returning to my task.

"Like us?" I stopped again, this time completely dropping the dish and letting it splash down into the bottom of the basin. I turned to look at my brother, still slouched over the now empty table, crystal eyes watching me intently and pink lips parted in a childlike expression.

"No, Cotton, not like us," I shook my head.

"Well how come?" he pushed on, following my figure as I made my way around the table. I stopped by his side, reaching out to squeeze his shoulder as I locked my eyes with his. It was like looking in a mirror some days. Our eyes were a perfect set of twins, our hair cut from the same cloth. When I laid my free hand upon his cheek, there was no telling where his flesh ended and mine began.

"Cause baby Elizabeth died," I told him solemnly, "And you and I are still here." This answer brought a sort of disturbed silence to my twin, but he nodded none the less, taking up from the table now and making his way upstairs. I watched him go, a sigh built up and trapped within my chest. I thought back to the pages of my book from the night before and wondered if this existence Cotton and I shared was worth living. The life of a bastard, even to the happiest among them, was still the life of a bastard, and I wondered if the task God had set before us was a hopeless one. It was hard to tell in these trying days when the feud was running hot.

"Sorry 'bout that, Abi," Nancy said lowly from her spot mending one of Cotton's shirts over by the window. I wiped my brow tiredly, warding off the bleak thoughts that had invaded me as of late. I really needed William back.

"Don't worry about it none," I heaved, hand running a path down and up the back of my neck. "Someone's gonna have to say something like that eventually. Johnse did _not _marry Roseanna, her daughter _was_ a bastard…just like us."

"Oh but you ain't a bastard no more, Abig-"

I shushed my cousin as the sound of a horse whinny reached my ears. I held a hand up, demanding her silence as I crept towards the front door, motioning her to duck out of the way of the window. She slunk along, close to the ground to squat behind the dining table as I put my back to the wall besides my riffle. The fall of hooves to dirt grew closer and I grabbed my weapon from the divider, ready to blow away any bounty hunter that dare travel this far in search of my kin. My sweaty palms gripped the barrel to my chest and I shook, delivering my soul up to God for judgment thinking I was about to kill my first man.

Whoever the rider was dismounted and I could hear the distinct sound of footsteps approaching my front door. I shot a look to Nancy, nodding to show she should stay down until it was safe. She huddled in on herself as the intruder gripped the handle and began to pull the door open. Sucking one last breath into me, I cocked the rifle and side stepped to stand in front of the door which was now ajar, rifle raised to level with a man's chest. My finger was already on the trigger and my body braced for the kick when my eyes met the miss matched ones of my husband.

"Will?!" I gasped, lowering the barrel to aim at the floorboards, entire frame shaking as he jumped back to avoid the initial threat of a bullet through the heart. "What in the blazin' are you-"

"Jesus Christ!" he exclaimed, straightening up and turning his good eye towards me. "What was you tryin' to do, take my head off?"

"Oh, I didn't know it was you, ya idiot," I breathed lowly, letting the tenseness leave my shoulders as I stepped forward and flung my arms around him. I felt him stiffen at first before returning the embrace and I sagged even further, pressing the rifle hard into his back. "I was so scared. I thought you was a bounty hunter." My admission was muffled in his shirt to the point of being unrecognizable, but I knew he heard it from the chaste kiss he pressed to my hair.

"S'Just me," he murmured, rubbing a comforting hand up and down my back. I nodded, pulling away and wiping hurriedly at the few tears that had gathered at the corners of my eyes. He pressed one last tickling kiss to my cheek and gave me a look with his deep brown eye. I smiled.

"Well you certainly know how to make an entrance, Cap," Nancy huffed, straightening from her spot on the ground. As she approached, she glanced up at the ceiling and I remembered Cotton had wandered upstairs not long ago. "Nearly gave your poor wife a heart attack."

"I was hopin' to have that effect on you," Will spat, leaning away from me as I slapped his side gently. I could tell from the way he held me close, hand firm on my waist that all was forgiven between us. We would talk about it, sure, but right now we were a united front just as we had always been. I leant my head onto his shoulder. "Thought maybe you'd keel over'n _die_ so I wouldn't have ta put up with ya no more."

"Enough now," I chided, nipping the situation in the bud before it could become a real argument between the siblings. I turned to William then, eyes sympathetic and knowing. "We heard about Johnse."

Will let out an irritated huff through his flared nostrils, adjusting his stance as he shook his head gently. "Johnse's a damned fool," he grumbled much like he had that morning three years prior as he had been hurling stones into the lake. I smiled despite the gruesome situation and laid my hand over his chest.

"Well," I sighed good-naturedly, "God gave him such good looks, he couldn't very well have givin' him a whole abundance a brains too now could he?" Will looked down at me, shock and humor in his gaze as he too recalled the conversation from the last time he had seen me before I was abducted by the McCoy boys.

Nancy scoffed off to our side, not recognizing the familiar conversation as she tossed aside Cotton-Top's shirt. "You can say that again," she spat in disgust as she moved to head upstairs, possibly to talk to my brother. Once she was gone, I looked back up at William and frowned at the scowl he wore.

"What will happen to them?" I asked lowly, knowing that despite her current anger, Nancy would not want serious harm to befall Johnse at the hands of his kin. The girl was soft hearted, much as she pretended not to be. William shrugged, reaching up to scratch his head beneath his hat.

"He wasn't in when we went round to get 'im," he informed gruffly, shutting the door behind him as he moved into our living room area. We sat down at the dining table and he rested his face in his hands with a sigh. I realized they had probably gone looking for him when he was here and bit my tongue not knowing how William would respond to this. "I just don't know what that dumb bastard was thinkin'."

Hearing the exhaustion and despair in my husband's voice, I reached out a hand and clasped his arm. I felt for him, I truly did. It made no sense that a son of Anderson Hatfield could turn out so God damned dumb when his brothers had all come out with their heads facing the right direction. I moved my thumb in comforting circles on his forearm as he wiped a hand over his face. "Hey," I soothed, "There ain't nothin' you can do with folks like Johnse. Once he's got an idea in his head, it'd be foolish to try'n stop 'im." Will nodded but still looked gloomily down at the planks of our table. It wasn't just Johnse that was bothering him. "What is it?"

My stoic husband sighed, his one good eye glancing at me before squinting out the window. "Bounty hunters are getting' closer." My heart stopped.

"Was someone hu-"

"No, no, everyone's fine," he assured, leaning his elbows on the table now as he fixed me with an oddly chagrined look. I rested a hand over my chest as I calmed down at the knowledge that everyone was alive and as well as could be expected.

"Well, then..." I forced a chuckle, "What's got you lookin' so blue?"

He was quiet for a time.

"The family may need to move up here with us for a little while just to be safe," he rushed out, never meeting my eyes as he delivered the news. My jaw fell open and I withdrew my hand from his arm in shock.

I was quiet for a time.

I was quiet...but I wanted to be loud. I wanted to shout from the very mountain tops and be smug and pompous over the fact. The fact that he had nearly given himself apoplexy when I had invited his sister to come live with us and here he had invited his entire family. His mother, father, six brothers, three sisters, and Lord knew who else. Hell, Jim Vance could be moving in with us for all I knew. I wanted to scream at the fact that he had made this decision without consulting me. I wanted to holler at the fact that he had yet to even apologize for his behavior regarding the Nancy situation before bringing this up. I wanted to rage and fume and raise hell over everything he was doing that just was not right for a husband to do.

I wanted to...but I didn't.

I didn't raise my voice or curse or cause a ruckus because I loved my husband. I loved my husband and I loved my family who desperately needed me to be giving right now. I could tell Will did not want this anymore than he had wanted Nancy and maybe even Cotton, but knew he would consent because it was just what family meant to him. He had not apologized for his reaction and maybe he never would, but I could see the shame and regret in his eye and it was all the apology I needed.

I put my hand back on his arm.

"We'll make room for them," I breathed out, blinking rapidly to hold back unwarranted tears as Will deflated with a large sigh. He looked as if I alone had just lifted the weight of the world from off his shoulders and a warm feeling filled me up from head to toe as he leaned across the table to pull me into a fierce kiss.

The kiss progressed, his hand firm on the back of my neck and our teeth scraping together until he finally pulled away and quickly excused himself to the upper level of the house. I was left hot and confused until I heard three sets of feet pounding down the stairs moments later. Looking over, I had to stifle down an embarrass laugh as I watched William ushering Nancy and Cotton out of the house urgently, barking orders for them to spend the night at his parents until he retrieved them the next day. Both youths were confused and indignant at the dismissal, but my husband could not get them out fast enough barely allowing me a moment to say goodbye.

As soon as the door closed behind them, he was upon me again, rough hands pulling at my blouse buttons as I reached up and snatched his hat from his messy hair. We stumbled up the stairs, falling into the bed we had shared for three years, unable to keep our hands off each other as we became reacquainted as we had not had the chance to do in nearly four months. Sweating beneath him, I gasped of how much I had missed him in the last few days. His response was a sweet profession of love grunted into my ear that sent me tumbling over the edge of ecstasy with him following close behind me all too soon.

Many hours and happy repeats later when the sun had long since set there was a thunderous knock on our front door. Too weak and euphoric to rouse myself from our sheets, I watched Will leave the room through hooded eyes and curled onto my side ready to fall back to sleep in the warm spot he had left. Sleep never came however as William was back within a few minutes bringing the news that Jefferson McCoy had shot and killed mailman Fred Wolford at the barn dance a few miles away.


	20. Née McCoy

**Sorry for the long waits between updates but I'm working around my college break dates and I'm starting summer break in 5 weeks so if we're all lucky, I'll get a few chapters cranked out while I'm home. Also I realize the story has been in 1886 for some time now, but that's just the way things have to be for a while because the chapters are moving a little slow. If I can find a way, this may be the last chapter in this year, but who knows.  
I realize Nancy seems a tad OOC in this chapter, but I'm trying to set her as a not completely horrible person until the death of her brother which is the last straw that sets her completely against the Hatfields. By next chapter she'll be the cold woman she appeared to be in the series.  
Also, sorry if this chapter is shorter than the rest, but I had a planned cut off point that leads into the next chapter which will be from Will's point of view.**

West Virginia, 1886

"How was town this mornin'?" I grunted as I lifted my saddle onto my mare's back. She shifted as I set it down but did not spook as I glanced over my shoulder at Nancy sitting on the fence that blocked the horses in. She shrugged.

"It was alright."

"Was Cotton on his best?" I inquired as I reached down to secure the strap beneath the old girl's belly. I had outright refused to let Nancy cross the Tug into town alone this morning, stating either Cotton went with her or she did not go at all. It had nearly turned into a brawl between us, but when I stubbornly brought down the fact that she was living under my roof and I was elder to her, she had agreed and ridden off clutching my twin's middle.

"Oh yes, he didn't stir up no trouble." I nodded approvingly at this, back still to the girl as I wiped my brow free of sweat. Though the air was still chilly, the work was tedious and I felt myself growing weary most days after only a few hours of chores around the house. This was usually when Nancy would step in and 'earn her keep' as she put it. "We had a run in with a real McCoy."

"Which?" I asked agitatedly, giving her my full attention now, unable to stop my eyes from doing a careful scan of her form for injuries.

"Sam," she informed, a recognizable sneer coming to her face as she hopped down from the fence. "He was tryin' to pick on Cotton-Top."

I too sneered at this, hands fisting at my sides as the black haired McCoy came to mind. Usually, you were hard pressed to see hide or tail of Sam without his brother, but a few weeks back Will had shot and killed Paris McCoy. The two had been sneaking along the edges of the timber yards like snakes in the grass when my husband had spotted them. Paris had been taking aim at my Uncle Anse when Will's bullet caught him in neck. Now usually I was not one for violence and I never indulged in gruesome details, but pride had swelled my chest when I heard of the great distance Will had shot Paris from. The way Jim Vance told it, Paris had had a sight on his gun to shoot Uncle Anse from about half the distance he himself was shot from. Will had needed no such instrument.

"Well, what happened?" I pushed, knowing nothing too serious had occurred since she and my brother had returned unscathed and Cotton had not seem vexed in the least.

"Nothin' really," she insisted, hopping down from the fence and fixing her skirt. "Charlie Mullins stepped in for us."

I perked up at this, eyebrows raised in surprise as I rechecked my saddle bag. I remembered the friendly Charlie from our younger years. He had courted Nancy but she'd shown no interested in the awkwardly tall young man. Once she'd married John Vance, I had not heard of Mullins again and yet here it was he had stepped in on behalf of my kin this morning. I studied Nancy critically, noting how she had a faraway look in her eyes and every few moments let out a wistful sigh. A sly grin made its way onto my face as I turned back to my mount, brushing her mane back idly as I addressed my cousin.

"Charlie Mullins was always mighty kind," I observed. "Did you know his daddy left him the convenience store when he died summer 'fore last?"

"He mighta mentioned it," Nancy conceded coming to stand beside me, tugging some random blades of grass from the ground and feeding them to the horse. I raised my eyebrow at her in question and she blushed. "He walked Cotton and myself back to the Tug to ensure we were not bothered again," she explained with a shrug. I nodded.

"Will and I shall have to send Cotton back with somethin' to show our thanks."

I moved to mount.

"Oh, I could take it," my pretty young cousin volunteered, moving aside as my steed shifted her position under my weight. I raised my eyebrow at her again, more humorously this time and chuckled under my breath when she blushed. "I mean a course if it is not too-"

"I'll talk to William about it," I assured her with a nod, pulling back on the reins as I backed my mount away from the fence. Nancy followed on foot, bright eyes turned to mere slants in the sunlight. "It'd not do for Charlie to go un-thanked for helpin' you two." The girl nodded.

"When do you reckin' you'll be back, Abigail?" she inquired, hand raised to shield her eyes from the sun. I squinted into the distance, shrugging my shoulders tiredly.

I was riding out today to keep my word to my brother-in-law and call upon his wife. I was not then, nor had I ever been fond of Nancy McCoy, but I could not bear to think of her withered soul all shut up in Johnse's shameful little shack without another human being to talk to. Johnse was constantly with his family who did not welcome her, and the last I had heard, her brother was on the run for murdering the mail man. There was no telling when he would show up again, or if he would even be alive when he did so I felt some semblance of pity for the poor girl.

"I don't rightly know," I told my cousin honestly, talking over my shoulder to her as I turned my mount around and started off. "Sometime before Will gets back I hope."

"He would not like this, Abi," she warned loudly, following slightly around the curve of the hill that made up the side of our home. I laughed, a tumbling of yellow hair falling down my back as I faced forward.

"That's why you're gonna cover for me!" I called back before spurring my mount into a steady trot, the pounding of her hooves on the trail drowning out any reply my sister-in-law might have made.

It was a near twenty minute ride to Johnse's cabin and as I rode I let my mind wonder. Things had greatly improved in the last few weeks between William and me, the two of us working together along with our siblings to ready our home for his family. There had been no reason yet to push the move along, but I knew sooner rather than later I would be living in a very crowded house and feeding many hungry mouths. Having the girls around would be great of course (it'd been years since I had spent any time with Mary and Elizabeth), but the boys were going to be a handful, and the babies -no matter the gender- were sure to keep the entire house on our toes.

I was excited and weary all at once.

Some days passed where I did not wish to do anything but sleep and possibly enjoy a long hot bath, but those days were few and far between and I found myself getting more exhausted as time went on. The fact that William was still being kept away most of the time did not help in the least as I found it hard to sleep without him and I really did not need anything else interfering in that area of my life. I found myself getting more and more ornery each time he walked out the door, choosing to bury myself in some menial chore that I would stick to until I was too played out to go on or until it was time to make a meal. I cried myself to sleep most nights, not knowing exactly why I was feeling so blue besides the frequent absence of my husband.

It was this last bit of strange occurrences that finally had me agreeing to go and have a talk with Nancy McCoy - now Hatfield. Her husband was not kept away for work nor the frequent callings of his family (no one wanted to see much of Johnse these days), he just stayed away to be rid of her. I could not imagine a life where William fled my presence, only feeling free in the moments when I was not around. It would be too miserable to bear. Nancy may have been a cold, ruthless girl when we were growing up, but I did not think she would be so set in her ways to turn away company when it was offered to her. If she did I would simply throw up the whole kit and caboodle.

When I finally reached my cousin's cabin it was high noon and there was no horse in the connecting stable. Something told me Nancy did not have one of her own and so was literally trapped at home all day. I inwardly berated Johnse for I knew he had been raised to be a better husband than how he was turning out. I dismounted; tying my mare to the post as I approached the front door, hands folded in front of me in what I hoped was an unoffending fashion. I did not want Nancy to think I was there to harass her.

I knocked.

A tall, dark haired minx opened the door slowly, green eyes narrowing into suspicious slits as she saw me. It was not until this very moment that I realized it had been years since I had seen Nancy McCoy up close, and I could not for the life of me recall a time when we had ever spoken even in childhood. The woman standing before me was a stranger in every way, not even a friendly trace of her blonde haired cousin being found anywhere in her features for me to latch on to. I floundered dumbly as she glared at me, thin lips set in a sour line as she quickly scanned the yard beyond me.

"Yes?" She had probably spoken the word as clearly as any, but it came to my ears like the hiss of a snake and I shivered, eyes flashing to where I had tied my horse in contemplation of fleeing.

"N-Nancy McCoy?" I tried to clarify, not knowing who else could possibly have slithered their way into my cousin's cabin. Her eyes widened as she opened the door further, the inside still completely blocked by her body as she leant toward me. The tiny cabin was a walk up and so she was hovering over me.

"That's Hatfield to you," she sniffed and my brow furrowed as I recalled a time when the late Tolbert McCoy had called me by my maiden name and I had corrected him in much the same fashion. Possibly with even more venom in my voice. I figured then that this woman was trying to belong just as I had been for so long and I was suddenly not quite so wary of her. I forced a smile.

"Hi there," I greeted, bobbing my head slightly. "I'm Abigail, Johnse's sister-in-law."

She shifted her weight so that she was not so imposing over me and checked me up and down. "Ain't you Cap Hatfield's wife?" she inquired, giving me a sideways look that had me wondering what exactly the McCoys said about me and my husband behind our backs.

"Yes," I complied none the less, "Johnse and I were cousins until I married his brother, William." I felt no personal shame about this; lots of people married their cousins and from the subtle nod of her head I could tell Nancy did not care one way or the other how exactly I was related to her philandering husband. She pulled her shawl more tightly around her, her dark braid falling over her slender shoulder.

"Well, Johnse ain't here at the moment," she informed me looking a bit downcast yet somehow still stony, "You'll have to call on him later."

She went to shut the door.

I caught it.

"I ain't callin' on Johnse." I tried to keep my smile sunny to make up for the fact that I had just kept her from closing her own front door. She eased up on it and my hand fell back down to my side. She was obviously confused and suspicious.

"Well then what do ya want?"

"I came to talk to you."

"'Bout what?"

I blinked.

"Whatever ya like."

Nancy Hatfield nee McCoy looked put off but not out by this statement. Her eyes widened marginally and she was again looking at me in that sideways fashion that made me believe she was used to staring at my family from the corner of her eye. Her bony fingers clutched her shawl to her chest and she licked her thin lips what I could only assume was nervously.

"Well, that's…" she hesitated, gaze falling to the dusty ground. I mimicked the gesture, noticing for the first time that she had not even bothered to dress properly or dawn shoes yet. It was past noon and the woman had already resigned herself to being stuck in the ramshackle cabin all day. I inwardly cursed Johnse. She looked up again. "That's mighty kind a you, Abigail." I nodded. "But I don't think I'm up for company right now."

To say I was surprised would have been a brash understatement in the face of God. I tilted my head at her almost incredulously as she moved as if to close the door again. I barely restrained myself from rolling my eyes to heaven, prepared to return to my mount dejectedly when there was suddenly a clattering from inside the cabin. Nancy hissed low between her teeth as my head snapped back around in an attempt to look through her to see what was hidden within her humble home.

"Nancy!" came a slurred cry from beyond her slender frame, "Shut the damn door! It's bright as hell out!"

That was not my cousin's voice.

I was more than positive my expression had become thunderous from the defensive stance Nancy appeared to take in her doorway. I noticed she did not attempt to rush me nor retreat back into the darkness of the cabin and so assumed she was not prepared with a gun for any form assault. Had I not been about to fly off at the mouth about how this little tramp was cheating on my love-blind cousin I would have taken a moment to inwardly curse Johnse again for not properly defending his whore of a wife.

Just as I opened my mouth to bring down my wrath, a tall form plowed into Nancy from behind the door and she stumbled. I blinked rapidly, taken completely off guard as the clumsy man leaned out the door to loom over me. He had an unkempt beard and a mess of brown curls that fell down onto his forehead, nearly obscuring his wild green eyes that matched Nancy's down to the darkest tint.

Jefferson McCoy.

Lord, but he had become a drunk.

I scrunched up my nose, not even able to decipher what Jefferson slurred at me as his sister began to forcibly shove him back into the cabin, reprimanding him all the time. Once he was loudly stowed away once more, she spun on me, looking mad as I stumbled back, shock still ringing through my form. I raised a slightly shaky hand to point beyond my line of vision.

"That's-"

"My brother," she spat, ignoring the fact that her shawl had fallen from her shoulders as she seemed to contemplate advancing on me. I took another worried step back. "What of it?"

I shook my head quickly in the negative not knowing exactly what I was trying to convey. My disinterest in turning in her brother? My unwillingness to rip away the only close family she had left? Perhaps I was just trying to ward off any ideas she was inventing for my quick and tidy demise? In the end it might have been a bit of all three and either way it worked to buy me time until I found my voice, lodged somewhere deep in my throat which my hand was clutching at.

"I was-" I grasped for a word. "-_worried_ he would not return to you." It was not a lie, but it was not a complete truth either, Lord forgive me. I could not be bothered to care one way or the other if Jefferson McCoy still skulked around the earth, but as a sister I knew the frantic panic that ensued when you thought you would not see your sibling again. The fact that this panic had been instated by this woman's own cousins did not change the sentiment. I looked up at her, trying to force sincerity into my wide eyes. She looked taken aback as well as suspicious of this confession and I fished for something else to add. "I-I know that half my family is lookin' for Jefferson an account a the price on his head." She glared. "B-But I'd hate to thinka Johnse his first brother-in-law."

Nancy Hatfield nee McCoy shifted in her doorway, squinting at me as if she could gaze directly into my heart's intentions if she got the right angle. When I did not falter under her observation, some of the tenseness eased off her shoulders though her eyes remained sharp. Glancing over her shoulder, she frowned at something or more likely some_one_ I could not see and sighed. When she turned back to me, weariness was obvious in her entire person and I was back to mildly pitying her as she bent to scoop up her shawl. It was dust smeared and tattered, but she swept it back over her shoulders like a security blanket and fixed me with a tired sulk. She was leaning heavily on the door frame.

"He's been stayin' with us ever since the mailman," she admitted with a lazy sniff, her eyes sweeping out behind me to the surrounding area before circling back. She had done this a few time throughout our conversation and it only occurred to me then, after seeing Jefferson, that she was keeping a look out for bounty hunters much like I did whenever I traveled in the company of most of my male kin. Our families were tearing each other apart. "Can't seem to keep him away from the drip though."

I nodded in semi-understanding, knowing that drunk men were insatiable men. I did not often keep my cousins' or uncles' company when they drank, but when I did I had to wonder what rapscallion had ever invented liquor. It turned even the gentlest souls into rude monsters and the most learned men into fury driven idiots. Jefferson, as far as I knew, had never been gentle or learned so I imagined drunken him was all the more monstrous and idiotic. I felt a pang in my chest thinking of Nancy having to deal with him and his clear disregard for her slighter stature day-in and day-out. Another curse to Johnse.

"Look, Nancy," I began, shoulders slumping in what I felt was a shared exhaustion as I addressed her, "I know you don't know me from a leaf on a tree and that our families don't get on, but…" She had her head perked up to listen to me, face looking decidedly curious. "I think we could get on." She blinked in barely suppressed surprise. "Will is gone near all day; off with Johnse and the others somewhere. I don't see nothin' keepin' us from keepin' each other company." She looked to be seriously contemplating my words, eyes cast to the ground until I spoke again and they snapped up at me. "I mean…we're family now…right?"

I would not be one to immediately call a person on any sort of off character display of emotion, nor even really react to such a thing. There were exceptions of course. Should Jim Vance suddenly break down into a pool of sobs before me, after I checked to see that I was not dreaming or dead, I would of course be shaken and off kilter from the occurrence. But that was an extreme exception. The few times William had cried in front of me, I had been moved to comfort him, but not at all taken aback by the act. I was his wife, he trusted me. Of course he could show emotion to me. Any member of my family could and I would simply act on instinct and step in as a soft lap to cry upon. A warm set of arms to fall into.

Watching Nancy's eyes water, however, shook me in a way I was unprepared for and I glanced around quickly not knowing if she was a person that was embarrassed to have others see her in a weak state. She seemed the type. She blinked rapidly, hand pressed to her chest and I prayed to God three times over to keep her cheeks dry so that I was not pushed beyond my comfort zone on day one of our interactions. I hadn't meant to upset her with my comment, and even if I knew these tears were ones of happiness and maybe even a bit of relief, I was simply not ready to wipe the from her face.

"Yeah," she said at last in a throaty chuckle, a final hard sniff assuring me there would be no crying today, "Yeah, we are family." I would not call the awkward tilt of the mouth she aimed at me a smile, but I returned it with a curve of my own lips and stepped forward as she moved aside to invite me into the cabin.

Perhaps I could form a friendship with Nancy.

Perhaps our friendship, like her marriage to Johnse, could serve as an example of tolerance between our families.

Perhaps our friendship, unlike her marriage to Johnse, could withstand the harsh misunderstandings that had fueled this feud for so long and bring it to an end.

As I stepped over her threshold, smile still on my face and hers, I desperately hoped for all of the above to occur.

She shut the door behind us.

None of my hopes would be realized that day.


	21. Let's Go Get 'Em

West Virginia, 1886

"Will, where's Abigail today?" Elizabeth piped up from down by my elbow. I spared her a glance over my rolled sleeves from where I was washing up in the horse's trough for lunch.

"She said she had some things to tend to down in town and could not join us," I informed my sister truthfully, remembering how my young wife had politely but eagerly turned down the usual invitation. I'd had a hunch that she was up to something, but figured I would not spoil whatever hair-brained idea of fun she had invented and ridden off to work as usual this morning. If anything happened, Nancy was with her and while this did not ease my mind, I knew my sister would keep her cousin from doing anything too stupid while I was away.

"Oh," my fifth youngest sibling huffed sounding downcast, "What about Cotton-Top?"

"He's still at the yard with Robert E. and Elliot, Liz." I straightened up, wiping the water off my hands with my shirt. My little sister was just passing eleven years old and each day she looked more and more like my mother. Right now she was sporting the telltale signs of a displeased Lavicy Hatfield and I frowned at her, mustache tilted at an angle. "Why don't you run off and play with Mary?"

"She's on an outin' with Frank Howe," the slight girl grumbled, turning tale and sauntering away, shoulders set low in the form of someone forgotten. I called to her that she could go find Elias but got no reply.

I was caught between going to comfort her and being stunned that my other sister was old enough to be taken on 'outin's. Last time I had checked, no Frank Howe had come to me asking if it was alright to court my little sister. I had set to grumbling under my breath, ready to stomp right across my parents' porch and ask who the hell this Howe fellow was when I saw Johnse riding in from the corner of my eye.

"Well, if it isn't Mrs. McCoy," I jeered as he pulled up to the post, face looking dark as he threw me a glare.

"Lay off, Cap," he huffed, dismounting as I leaned against the porch railing, squinting out into the sunlight at him. "I ain't in the mood for your quip today."

"Why?" I went on, eyes following him as he ascended the three steps to the shade of the porch, "The missus got you're breetches in a knot?"

"Cap." I hadn't even heard the front door swing open to reveal my Uncle Lias. "Stop teasin' your idiot brother and get on in here to eat."

"Sure thing," I conceded, shooting Johnse one last sneer as we brushed past each other to get through the door first.

In the end, Johnse made it through and I threw the door shut with a slam after me. My mama shot me and agitated look from her spot near the counter and I thought to look chagrined through removing my hat before approaching the table. Daddy and his brothers were already seated, Johnse taking the place beside Uncle Wall while I went and sat at the head next to Jim. We all dug in, Mama not forgetting to snatch Johnse's hat off his head as we all stared at him warily.

"So," Uncle Wall was the first to break the silence, leaning into Johnse, "How's the married man?"

"Doin' just fine, Uncle Wall," he answered none too pleasantly as he stabbed at the serving plates, slopping sliding food before him. We all shifted. "Just fine."

I snorted.

"So marriage suits ya then, huh?" Uncle Wall joined in, not looking incredibly interested in his nephews answer.

"Yes sir, right down to the ground," my brother assured, using a term we had all heard Abi use when describing how she liked marriage. The thought of my wife allowed me a short moment to smile to myself before focusing on Uncle Jim who had chosen now to speak up.

"She must be one sorry ass cook," he observed. I stifled my laugh by shoving a piece of bread in my mouth. "You choosin' a ham supper over a comin' McCoy bride?"

"Well, she ain't a McCoy no more is she?" Johnse defended leaning forward in his seat with the potato plate and spoon still clutched in his hands. "She's a Hatfield…Mrs. Johnse Hatfield."

"Hatfield ain't just a name on a piece a paper," I cut in around my lunch, personally feeling insulted that Johnse could think his marriage validated that McCoy bitch. Me marrying Abigail hadn't made her a Hatfield, she had proved herself as one. She had earned her place. I was ready to state this fact when my father cut in for the first time in the conversation.

"Don't expect to bring her around here like the last one," he warned, moving his toothpick calmy between his fingers, "Things get spoke that ain't for McCoy ears."

"I didn't bring her here did I?" Johnse sassed earning him a smack upside the head from Mama.

"Don't sass you father," she snapped, "It's your own horn dog philanderin' that you in this mess." I chuckled, watching my older brother become frustrated with our mother's reprimand out of my good eye.

"Please, you know what? I get enough grief at home!" Everyone simmered down at this, a look passing between my father and Lias. "Truth be told, I need to get away for a bit." Johnse was looking more put out than I had seen him in a while and I spared him one of the rare gazes we had not shared since we were teens. He shook his head at my unspoken question. "It' ain't her," he insisted, "Nancy treats me fine, it's just…her goddang brother is turnin' my honeymoon into misery."

The tension in that room could have been cut with a butcher's knife after that statement. We all shifted uncomfortable, Mama temporarily letting her eyes leave whatever she was doing at the counter. I leaned forward towards my brother.

"Jefferson McCoy?" I tested. Johnse glanced up, unbothered, and nodded confirmation. "I heard he killed a mailman the other day."

"Yeah, got a goddang reward up too," Johnse admitted, still hacking violently at his ham. I leaned back in my seat, stunned at my own brother's sheer idiocy. Daddy was obviously upset over it to since he looked about ready to pinch the bridge of his nose as he spoke next.

"You're harborin' a McCoy," he began, his voice dropping to a nearly enraged rasp, "With a price on his head?"

"Nancy says it's just for a while," Johnse bemoaned, clearly not recognizing the murder in each of our eyes. "She says it's her duty to protect him."

"Well," Jim commented around a mouthful of ham, "She's a loyal sis." He leaned over and bumped my elbow with his. "Kinda like Abi." I didn't comment on him comparing my wife to a McCoy, but Johnse looked up and nodded, putting on a vague smile around his supper. "How much is the reward?"

"I don't know. A hundred dollars maybe."

Jim turned to me then, a greedy glint in his eyes and I knew exactly what he was thinking. We were going to get that McCoy bastard and string him up for the reward. I nodded my silent agreement, returning to my meal as Mama told Johnse he should take some time away from home and stay with them. I could tell that just like Jim, she had her own ulterior motives as she rustled my father into inviting his eldest out hunting. The two men agreed and as my parents both spared me a simultaneous look I realized they knew exactly what Jim was planning. Not only did they know, but they agreed with it and so were making sure Johnse was out of the picture.

Sometimes my parents still managed to surprise me.

The rest of lunch was spent bad mouthing Jefferson McCoy until the little ones woke up from their naps. Elias and Elizabeth came in for their share of food just as Mary came back from her outing escorted by Cotton-Top and Robert E. The house was getting crowded now and after a quick shake down of Mary about her male suitor, I stepped outside with Jim. We lazed on the porch for all of two minutes, Jim shoving his usual helping of chew in before he turned to me.

"Well," he huffed, hitching up his pants by the belt, "Let's go get 'em."

In record time we were saddled, mounted, and off like a shot from Hatfield property. We rode straight through the brush, setting a near grueling pace so that we would be far off before Johnse and Pa went out on the hunt. Jim was laughing manically half the way there and I myself could not help a satisfied smirk. I had had it with these no good McCoys making my life a living hell and today was the day to get a little revenge. Plus I had no doubt her brother's arrest would put that McCoy bitch right in her place and learn her about seducing my brother.

We were coming through the wood surrounding Johnse's cabin before too long and we slowed our mounts to a light trot. Jim had pitched the idea that sooner or later, Jefferson would present himself without us having to rough through Johnse's place and drag him out with his sister. I agreed that this was probably true and so when we came upon the little wooden shack, we drew our horses to a complete stop and waited.

"Still can't believe Johnse was so damn dumb as to knock up one McCoy and marry another," Jim spat, resting his hands idly over the saddle horn. I nodded grimly, knowing my brother was making us all look bad with his unquenchable appetite for romantic trouble. "I just don't see why he couldn't have been more like you," Jim went on, sitting back slightly, "You did well. You got yourself a fine wife." I dipped my head beneath my hat. "How is my little niece?"

"Abi's fine," I assured, not taking my eyes off the heap of scrap Johnse called a home. "She and Nancy should be off in town right now." Jim nodded.

"She in the family way yet?"

"Jim!" I could feel my cheeks start to flush and I cursed lowly as my uncle coughed out a laugh.

"Boy, it ain't nothin' to be ashamed of," he guffawed, spitting another helping of his chew onto the ground far below. "I'm just wonderin' when I can see little versions a you and Abigail runnin' round."

I shifted in my saddle knowing there was nothing more I would like in the world than to see just that. Little girls running around with my hair and Abi's eyes. A strong son working the yard with my mouth and my wife's quick wit. I wanted children badly, as did Abigail, it just had not happened for us yet. I told Jim as such and he hummed in what I assume was supposed to be a sympathetic way.

"Just as well," he sighed, drawing my good eye, "Abi's so dang little she might not make it through childbirth."

"Abi's tough as nails," I defended heatedly, feeling sick at the very suggestion that my wife could go in such a way, "She can make it through anything."

Jim looked ready to protest when we heard the cabin door creak open from ahead of us. We both quieted as just as Jim had predicted, Jefferson McCoy came slinking out looking as if he had not seen a bath in days. He walked idly, casting wary glances back at the cabin before moving to lean down into the brush just out front of it. When he straightened up again he had a barrel of whiskey tipped into his mouth and I had to scoff. Lord, but he had become a drunk.

"I believe that's a Jefferson McCoy." Uncle Jim's statement had the young man whirling around, whiskey forgotten as he took notice of us for the first time.

"Who's sayin' that?" he asked, looking ready to flee like a hare when he noticed we were both on horseback. Jim waved with a false smile. Neither of us had drawn on him yet.

"Johnse Hatfield's uncle, Jim Vance," he informed before pointing to me, "And his little brother, Cap."

I tipped my hat to the drunkard.

"W-Where's Johnse?" The man was putting up a good front, but I could tell even from a distance that he knew we weren't just here to make a family call.

"Out huntin' with his pa."

"So…whatchu doin' here?"

Jim spit into the dirt.

"Doin' a little huntin' ourselves." Jefferson looked back and forth between us shakily, lingering for a moment on my milky eye before he raised up his arms and shrugged to my uncle.

"Well," he forced a laugh, "Not much huntin' round here. Place is all shot out of deer and such."

"Oh there's still critters here," Jim insisted. I saw Jefferson's shoulders hunch. "And one critter in particular has a handsome reward on his head."

Jefferson's face fell.

I drew my gun on him.

He bolted.

Instead of heading straight for the woods, Jefferson McCoy made a run for his brother-in-law's cabin. I dismounted quickly and cut him off at the built on stable, grabbing him round the waist but not before he grabbed hold of a post. Jim was off his horse and coming towards us now as the man started to holler for his sister.

"NANCY! NANCY, HELP!" I grunted, pulling him off the post and to the ground just as the cabin door opened again and Nancy McCoy came thundering out looking murderous.

"What're you doin' to my brother?!" she demanded, still dressed in her night gown and her dark hair pulled back in a braid. I ignored the woman, landing a punch across Jefferson's face as Jim turned to her.

"Nancy, do somethin'! They're gonna take me in!" Jefferson had grabbed hold of another post and as I yanked him off of this one, the wood splinted and fell to the ground with us. Johnse's cabin was shit.

"Get off!" Nancy barked. Jim blocked her path to us.

"Get yourself back in that cabin, Miss McCoy," he instructed her, "Get yourself dressed proper."

Jefferson McCoy was still putting up a fight, but even though he was older, we had evened out in size since childhood. He tried to kick out with his legs but we were nearly equal in height and I avoided the blows. He was strong, but I was stronger and easily getting the upper hand as I landed another punch.

Nancy was beside herself.

"GET OFF HIM, YOU OLD COOT!"

"What the hell you gonna do about it?" Jim scoffed, turning back to helping me as Jefferson's struggles became weaker as he tired himself out. Still he hollered for his sister. I was looking up to tell Jim to grab the rope from my saddle when I saw Nancy coming up behind my uncle. But even though she was armed with a horse whip, I could not have been less concerned about her when I saw who came rushing out of the cabin behind her.

"Abigail?!"

"What're you doin'?" she hollered, pale eyes looking stunned as Nancy took to whipping Jim. Jefferson was still trying to wiggle free as the brunette struck my daddy's uncle over and over again. "Nancy, stop!"

When Jim grabbed the McCoy girl and threw her down to the hay, I prayed that this whole ordeal could be over, but as he began to whip her mercilessly I saw a wild glint appear in my wife's eyes. She rushed forward and I nearly jumped off Jefferson.

"Abi, don't!"

"Stop it, Uncle Jim!" she cried, grabbing the large man by the arm and trying to pry him off. Nancy was sobbing and bloodied as my small wife attempted to drag our uncle off of her. "Stop it!"

"Abigail, leave it!" I begged, my warnings being drowned out by Jefferson's cries for his sister to not put up with a whipping. I would have gotten off the stupid man if I didn't think he would take to the woods as soon as he was able. It was this line of thought and the fact that I was glaring down at the villain which lead to me missing when Jim had retaliated against Abi. When I looked up next it was because of her pained cry and to see Jim towering over her, whip in hand having already been used.

"You stupid, bitch!"

"NO!" I thundered, abandoning Jefferson to plow into my uncle, knocking him off his feet and away from Abigail. "DON'T YOU TOUCH HER!"

"Get off me you stupid son of a bitch!" Jim back handed me across the cheek, knocking me off like I weighed no more than the women. "The McCoy's gettin' away!"

With a growl I turned and saw that, yes, Jefferson was high tailing it into the woods, abandoning his sister to Lord knew what. My blood was boiling from Jim raising his hand to my wife, but I couldn't just let a McCoy with a price on his head get away. Jim was already up and rushing to his horse when I turned to Abigail. She had tears streaming down her face and hay was littered all over her person. My heart broke and my skin crawled just seeing her like this.

"Will, don't," she sobbed, reaching out futilely through the ground filth in search of my hand. I heard Jim's mount start to ride away and I let out an aggravated cry before getting to my feet and giving my wife an apologetic grimace.

"I'm sorry, Abigail," I told her, feeling like I was no better than Jefferson as I ran to my horse. Jumping into my saddle, I couldn't help but glance back to Abigail who was trying to help Nancy now, the brunette fighting futilely, her body raked with sobs.

"Hurry up, boy!" Jim snapped as he urged his horse into a gallop, heading off in the direction Jefferson McCoy had run. I followed close behind, suffering internally as I listened to my wife call after us.

"Don't! Please, William, leave him be!" We ignored her, riding hard and fast after Jefferson who seemed to be on route to the river. If he crossed it was all over and we'd likely never catch him. It was still too dangerous for us to wonder into Kentucky so we spurred our mounts on faster, unwilling to lose the son of a bitch.

"He's gotten in the river!" Jim called back to me, maneuvering his larger horse through the thick under brush. I cursed to myself, pulling up alongside him as we cleared the woods and came to the babbling tug. Jefferson had already waded half way across, his clothes heavy with water as he fled from us.

We dismounted and I grabbed my gun from the saddle bag, mouth set in a grim line. Today had gone to shit just like every other day and I completely blamed the McCoys. As we rushed the lip of the river, I watched Jefferson pull himself out on the other side and took aim at him. The shot was far and my arms were shaking with rage as he began to dance around foolishly.

"Come on you great ape!" he jeered, "You'll never hit me from here! Take your best shot!"

"Come on, Cap!" Jim coached gruffly, taking a knee before me and letting me steady my aim on his shoulder. Jefferson was still jumping about like a fool, both middle fingers up and saluting me as he insulted me over and over. I had him in my sights now though. "Shoot him, boy!"

"Will, no!"

The shout alone would not have affected my shooting. I was used to years of a gang of siblings distracting me and jeers being thrown my way from those McCoy bastards. Noise was no problem. However, my wife's tiny body ramming into my much larger one was just enough to jolt my shoulder. I was a steady shot, so I knew enough to set my feet, but I still shifted. The bullet went off to the right and because of Abigail's intervention, instead of getting caught square between the eyebrows, Jefferson McCoy had his right eye blown out of his head.


	22. Milky

**Heads up readers, a fellow fanfiction writer has decided to write a 'sister story' to Knee Deep in the River. I Know These Hills by craZkid can be found here on the net or on her DeviantArt page for which she maintains the same pen name. I suggest you all give it a go if you're feeling up for it. Should anyone else feel the want to make a 'sister story' to this or any other fic I write, you need only ask.**

West Virginia, 1886

Things had been going so well. Better than I had ever dared to pray for.

For all the years I had spent considering Nancy McCoy a sour and off putting girl, I had never dared to imagine that she could be light hearted and even funny when the mood struck her. Of course, many of her jokes and jabs were aimed at my kin, but I respected the fact that she seemed to be actively avoiding bad mouthing my brother.

That was another thing about Nancy. She loved her brother more than the sun and the moon and that was something I understood whole heartedly and admired. Jefferson himself was still a bit much for me, and I could not forget those harsh words he had spat at me at that Election Day all those years ago. Still, he complimented his sister well and watching the two of them go back and forth with quips and blunted insults set me to smiling for the majority of my visit.

Things had been going so well. Better than I had ever dared to pray for.

That was why when Jefferson made the offhanded comment about needing to go water the brush, I did not think twice of the bearded man traipsing out of the cabin. It wasn't until the sound of voices floated in from the outside that Nancy took to the window and scowled. She spun on me, eyes setting a blaze on my person that left me frozen in confusion.

"Nancy?" I tested lowly, "What's the mat-"

"You lyin' snake," she ground out, entire body quivering in rage, "You tricked me."

I gasped, wondering now exactly what was happening outside to bring this accusation on. I stood from my cousin's wedding bed and frowned at her. "Nancy, what are you-"

"NANCY!" Jefferson's urgent cry cut over my sentence and dread filled me up to the brim. I knew what was happening now. "NANCY, HELP!"

My would-be friend made a rush for the door and I could not fathom one thing I could have said to stop her. My mind was reeling as I heard her confront someone that sounded suspiciously like my Uncle Jim. Inwardly all I could do was pray that I would wake any minute from this obviously very vivid nightmare, but when I blinked and found myself still in Johnse's cabin I began to panic. Things had been going so well to just come tumbling down with a vengeance now, but I could not stand idly by and watch our families continue to tear each other apart any longer.

I ran out of the cabin, but what I ran into was even worse than I had expected.

"Abigail?!"

"What're you doin'?!" I asked Will, feeling something akin to illness well up in my stomach. My husband had Jefferson McCoy face down in the dirt struggling for his freedom and as I turned, I saw his sister lash out at Jim Vance viciously with a horse whip. "Nancy, stop!"

I could barely think straight as I winced away from the crack of the whip on Jim's body, but when I saw him throw the small brunette into the hay, I could tell things were only going to get worse. A large part of me wanted to run to Will and beg for comfort and forgiveness for going against him, but another part of me knew I could not let this continue. When Jim turned the whip on Nancy and began striking her repeatedly, I felt the part of me the needed solace shrink.

"Abi, don't!" I heard William cry as I all but leapt at my uncle. I wrapped my two small arms around his one, whip wielding one and tried to pull him back.

"Stop it, Uncle Jim!" I cried, my voice falling faintly amongst the simultaneous shouts of Jim, Nancy, Will and Jefferson. "Stop it!"

My uncle was a large man, and as he stood to full height, my added weight not vexing him at all, I felt my entire body become airborne. He tossed me like a sack of flour to the side and I landed with a huff against the cabin, hay kicking up all around me. I went to push myself up on my hands when suddenly a stinging pain in my side knocked me back to the ground. I didn't cry out, too shocked by the fact that Jim had just whipped me. The next blow, however, swung up and caught me across the side of my face and neck.

I screamed.

Will heard me.

"NO!" he bellowed. I managed to look up in time to see my husband plow into his favorite uncle, knocking him into the hay besides where Nancy was still sobbing hysterically. "DON'T YOU TOUCH HER!"

"Get off me you stupid son of a bitch!" I winced, hand cradling my own face as Jim backhanded William across the face. I noticed for the first time now that tears were streaking down my face as they skated over my whip lashes. The salt water stung. "The McCoy's gettin' away!"

Turning along with Will, I saw Jefferson disappear into the woods and could have screamed in frustration after him. This was entirely his fault and as I turned to my husband, hiccupping a desperate plea for him not to follow, I knew this could ruin everything. Any chance of reconciliation between our families, Nancy's last shred of decency, my relationship with William, everything.

"I'm sorry, Abigail," Will breathed, and I felt a stab in my heart as he took after our uncle. Sobs shaking my frame I crawled to Nancy, trying and failing to drag her from the dirt as she cried out for her brother.

"Get after 'em," she sobbed, blood running down from her nose, "Get after 'em!" I released her arm, watching her fall back to where she lay helplessly as I looked after William. He and Jim were fast abandoning the cabin area and not knowing what I hoped to accomplish, I set out at a run after them.

"Don't!" I cried, hair flying behind me like a flag as I chased after their horses, "Please, William, leave him be!"

My kin ignored me and I felt another stab in my heart now accompanied by a stitch in my side as I continued running. Luckily for me the brush here was thick and so their horses were within hearing distance. I made sure to follow the sound of hoof falls as I jumped and ducked to avoid tree branches, my skirts being torn and dirtied the longer I chased.

I may never know why I went after the two Hatfield men. In my heart, I knew Jefferson McCoy was dead as soon as he killed that mailman, but something about the way Nancy had fought to protect him and spared him so many fond glances during my visit spurred me on. I did not want to lose what I had found today in her. She was more than the cold hearted creature my kin made her out to be, but I knew losing her brother would be the last straw.

I ran harder.

Across open fields and down winding hills for what felt like miles, I ran after them.

I could hear Jefferson now, calling out insults and jeers as I neared the edge of the wood. I could only imagine he had made it across the river but I knew my family and I knew William. A river would not stop him. And so with heaving breast and sweating brow I cleared the tree line to find my husband taking aim at a dancing Jefferson McCoy over my uncle's steady shoulder. My blood was pounding in my ears, my heart racing a mile a minute and as I sprinted that last few feet to my kin I knew things were about to change forever.

"Will, no!"

I rammed into his shoulder.

The gun fired.

Jefferson McCoy fell down dead.

"Woo!" Jim cried, "Right through the eye!"

"No!" I gasped out of breath as Will spun on me. I was tossed to the ground by momentum and exhaustion and I immediately began to heave. I felt like I was going to be sick, the edges of my vision growing fuzzy as William loomed over me. Jim was already rushing towards his mount.

"What the devil was you thinkin'?!" I just shook my head at my husband's harshly spoken question. I could not answer at the moment and I did not know what I had been thinking anyway. Across the way, Jefferson McCoy's body was being carried downstream by the Tug's current.

"Pretty good, boy," Jim laughed from atop his horse, hands resting over the saddle horn. He had idled up to us and I spared him a weak glare from beneath my sweat dampened locks. "Too bad your wife nearly sent it all to shit."

"Jim!" William snapped, entire form stiff with anger. He seemed to have just recalled everything that had occurred at the cabin. "Get outta here!"

Devil Anse's uncle looked unconcerned with his great nephew's anger, spitting into the dirt as he began to steer his mount away. "Don't get ornery with me, boy," he warned, heading down toward the tug to collect Jefferson's body no doubt, "It's that wild wife you need to have a talkin' to."

When he was over the ridge and out of ear shot, Will made to pick me up by my arm but I pulled away from him, entire being sore and tired as I told him not to come nearer to me. "Come on, Abi," he beseeched, squatting down beside me, eyes looking more torn than I had seen in a while. I just shook my head at him, arms shaking with the effort of supporting me.

"You let him beat Nancy like she was a mule," I huffed out. I reached up to brush my hay ridden hair back from my face, wincing as I brushed over where the horse whip had caught my jaw line. William looked ready to burn down the sky with his scowl. "And worse."

"What was I supposed to do?" he retorted defensively, "Now, I stopped him when he raised it to you-"

"You shoulda stopped him for her _too_, William," I growled, squeezing my eyes shut in pain as I dragged myself to my feet, refusing Will's assistance. "It ain't right what he did to her."

I could tell he thought I was right but that he was beginning to feel backed into a corner and so was becoming ornery. He stepped back from me, mouth set in a grim line as he snatched his hat from his head and began to bat it against his thigh.

"Why the hell should I care what happens to some McCoy bitch?" he sneered, bringing his voice down low as he leaned in toward my face. I turned away, scowl hurting my bruising mouth. "It's her own damn fault for bein' part a her family-"

"Oh, she's just a person, Will!" I argued over him, staggering as I moved away from him. "She's just a person like you n' me, what the hell's her name got to do with anythin!?" My throat was sore from all the day's shouting but I could not keep from raising it during my declaration. Will watched me out of his one good eye and I huffed irately when he did not seem to catch on to what I was saying. "That girl's never done nothin' to no one and you just killed the last person she had in this world."

"Since when do you care about the McCoys?" Will asked, hands on hips as he tried to sum me up. "In fact when'd you start callin' on McCoys behind my back?"

"Ugh, this ain't about that, Will," I bemoaned, hands resting on my lower back as I tried to walk off my growing discomfort. Will shook his head, returning his hat to its proper place as he kept watch on me.

"Well, maybe it should be, Abigail," he snapped, "You told me you was goin' into town this mornin'. You lied to me and you had my sister lie to me."

"I knew you wouldn't think well a me goin' to call on Johnse's wife!" I reasoned, not at all denying the fact that I had lied to cover my tracks. What I had done was wrong but there were so many worse things in play here.

"You're damn right I wouldn't!" I could tell Will was only working himself into a greater anger, his voice rising and echoing across the now empty area. "Next thing you know, you'll be actin' like Johnse! You'll be a goddamned McCoy sympathizer!"

"Don't you talk to me like that William Anderson Hatfield!" I warned, aiming a slim finger at my husband. Turning, I began to stomp up to where his mount was waiting and called to him angrily over my shoulder. "You've got some nerve to speak that way after your uncle just put a whippin' to me!"

"Oh, so what? Now the McCoys are better?" he accused, easily matching my stride and reaching his mount the same time as me. He set his hand onto the saddle horn, arm barring me from saddling up as I glared at him.

"I didn't say that!" I bit out, realizing this was probably the most heated fight we had ever had as he glared down at me. "But a McCoy certainly never beat me for tryin'a help someone!"

"_I_ didn't beat you!"

"But _you_ didn't listen to me either!" I cried out, pain twisting in my chest as I remembered William's disenchanting apology back at the cabin. I gasped, realizing too late that I was on the brink of tears as I continued on. "You went after Jefferson even after I begged you not to!"

My tears seemed to ground Will somewhat and he looked beyond chagrined as I sobbed weakly and swayed in front of him. He reached out but I brushed him away along with my tears. I could not keep falling to pieces like this. "What was I supposed to do, Abi?" he asked me sadly, "Just let him off?"

"Yes!" I pushed weakly at his shoulder, leaning against his old mare for support. "Yes, because that's what I asked of you and that's what husbands do for their wives!"

"I could-!"

"Hey!" We both turned to see Johnse riding towards us, a content smile gracing his face as it hadn't in months until he drew closer. I sniffed, hiding my face in the saddle as he pulled up not far from where Will had taken aim at Jefferson. "Whatchu two doin' all the way out here?"

"Bit a huntin', big brother," Will answered, turning to me to see if I would follow along. I ignored him, fingering idly at the saddle bag as he turned back to my cousin. "Heard there's game up here."

"Ah well, not really," Johnse confessed. His voice sounded happier than I could remember it sounding in a while and I wondered where he had been today while avoiding his new bride. "Abi Angel," he focused suddenly, "You alright?"

I shifted my weight awkwardly before deciding this was not my mess to cover up and turning to my cousin. He looked taken aback by my disheveled state, face bruising, eyes red, and hay littered everywhere. "Hey, Johnse."

"My God," the handsome man breathed, turning as if to see if Will had noticed my face yet. When Will only looked off down the river, Johnse frowned back at me. "Somebody bashed you, sis?"

"Bit a…trouble down at your cabin actually," I admitted, tongue darting out and catching a crusting drop of blood from the corner of my mouth. "I reckon you better run and check on Nancy."

"What's goin' on, Cap?"Johnse asked at full attention now, facing looking livid as he squared off with his younger brother. Will for his part did not abandon his state of put on dismissal as he sniffed up at his sibling.

"Came to round up Jefferson McCoy," he admitted, squinting in the reflected sunlight off the Tug. I could hear Johnse begin to mumble worriedly to himself, blue eyes looking far off as Will motioned down the river. "I believe he is done for."

"How could ya do this to me, Will, hm?" it was the first time Johnse had called him Will since he lost the use of his eye and I could tell this fact was not lost on my husband. The mounted blonde nodded to me. "To Abigail?" When William still had no answer I watched Johnse huff through his nose and take up his reins again. "I'm ashamed to call you my brother." With an angry 'ya!' he was off at a gallop towards his home and wife. I turned back to Will who had turned to lean over his arms against his saddle.

"Will-"

"Abi, just…" he trailed off, face still burried amongst his arms much like they had been the day of Tom's death.

When he finally straightened up I could see his eyes were red around the edges yet he had refused to let tears fall at his brother's words. He turned to me then, sighing heavily as he took in my abused face. When he reached out for me this time, I did not push him away and instead leaned into the feel of his rough hands against my sore cheek. He cupped my face before running his fingers into my hair and drawing my forehead to his. I reached up and held onto his wrists for dear life.

"Will?"

"I'm sorry," he breathed, positioning me so that he could lay kisses across my hairline. "I'm so very sorry." I nodded, dropping his wrists so that I could snake my arms around his middle. I hugged him close as his arms draped over my shoulders and he buried his face in my hair. "I don't know what happened today."

"I do," I said lowly, voice muffled against his shirt front. I did know. Will had let his hate for the McCoys get the best of him and now he was realizing the consequences. It was scary to think what men fueled by hate could do in a moment of blind fury and today, I felt, was just the beginning for William. "This whole feud and the reason behind it has gone as milky as your eye, and I don't know if we'll ever see daylight again when it has done with us."

He huffed out a laugh, no doubt at the reference to his eye, before sniffing loudly. With one last kiss to my hair he pulled back from me and really studied my face. It must have been a wreck from the grimace I received. "Come on," he sighed, moving so I could finally mount up, "Let's go get your horse from Johnse's and get home."


	23. Leaning on the Everlasting Arms

**Just sort of a fluffy filler chapter with a scenario that I wanted to put in now since from here on out, things get a little dark.  
Fun facts for this chapter: Nancy Glenn was the woman William Hatfield married in real life, and ****_Leaning on the Everlasting Arms_**** was a hymn that was published in 1887. Also, recent movie reference in this chapter, give a shout if you spot it.**

West Virginia, 1887

"By the power vested in me by the state of West Virginia, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

We all cheered whole heartedly as my cousin touched lips to his blushing bride for the first time. Robert E had finally bucked up the courage to court Mariah Wolford last year and the girl had responded in kind. Their engagement was short, the two twenty-one years old eager to know each other as man and wife. Mariah was friendly and eager to integrate as she allowed myself, Nancy, Victoria and even Lavicy help her plan for the big day. It was easy to see that she would make a good Hatfield.

"I present to you for the first time," Preacher Garrett continued, smiling amicably as Rob and Mariah pulled apart beaming, "Mr. and Mrs. Robert E Hatfield."

Another cheer went up as the two newlyweds turned to face the church, hands raised up between then. I clapped enthusiastically, only turning away from my cousin to spare his best man a coy smile. Will looked down right handsome in his black suit with his hair brushed back from his face. I laughed as he shot me a flirtatious wink, linking arms with Mariah's maid of honor, Nancy Glenn, as the wedding party made its way down the aisle. Elliot was not far behind with Margaret Schindler on his arm and from the way the sixteen year old was eyeing his chosen date, I guessed there would be another engagement not far off.

Sparing waves for members of my family that passed, I turned back and gave an exaggerated grin to Rosada who was standing in the pew beside me. She was three now and was starting to show bursts of her own excitable personality. She was a happy, bubbly child and when Lavicy had asked me to watch over her during the ceremony I had been more than obliged to do so.

"Wasn't that fun?" I asked, hoisting her onto my hip as everyone began to vacate their seats and make for the exit. The curly haired youth clapped her chubby hands enthusiastically.

"Robby married," she informed. I nodded sagely, checking to make sure I had not left anything of mine or hers behind as I shuffled into the aisle. Elias, Detroit, and Joseph, who had been considered too young to be groomsmen, followed close behind, chattering animatedly as they had not been able to during the ceremony. As we milled out into the street with everyone else, I continuously recounted them to make sure one did not run off from me.

"Where in the Sam hill is your daddy?" I asked Elias. He turned from his conversation with his brothers to spare me and exasperated eye roll. For a ten year old he appeared to have quite an attitude.

"He's drivin' the cart with Robert E and Mariah back to the house," he said as if I should have known this. Perhaps I should have but I still warned him off the lip before asking after his mother. "She went with 'em."

"Guess I'll take y'all with me then," I grumbled, scanning the crowd for my brother who had not sat with us inside. Through the sea of my uncles, aunts, and other distant kin, I spotted the fair haired young man talking animatedly with my cousins Mary and Elizabeth. I waved all three of them over, feeling myself huff wearily as I did another quick head account. "Hopefully all eight of us can fit into mine and Will's cart, cause I ain't about to leave none of ya here."

"I could stay behind," Mary piped up suddenly, drawing my suspicious eye. She looked flustered at her own outburst but trudged on. "I mean…I could always ride with the Howes."

I turned and squinted across the dusty court yard then, spotting the Howe family not far off. Their eldest, Frank, was currently, hitching up their wagon as his parents tried to work out whether or not they wanted to come to the reception. I lifted an eyebrow as Frank glanced up and spared my young cousin a shy smile. Turning back to her, I was just in time to see the nervous wave she did in return. An amused if not astonished inhale and a shake of my head later, I began ushering all my kin towards my wagon.

"Nope, nope, none a that," I decided, placing Rosada down on the front seat as I began to help the boys climb into the back. "I ain't about to let Uncle Anse or Will have my head cause I let you go traipsin' off with Frank Howe unsupervised." My cousin huffed indignantly and refused my helping hand as she clambered into the back to sulk beside her sister. I shrugged, not caring if she was ornery with me as long as we got a move on soon. Once they were all situated and cozy, I returned to the front of the cart where Cotton-Top had pulled Rosada into his lap and was waiting to go impatiently.

"Hurry up, Abi," he rushed as I moved to untie the horse before climbing into the seat beside him, "We's gonna miss the dancin'!"

"Cotton, a weddin' reception goes all night," I chuckled, keeping focused on the task at hand less I accidently run over Jim Vance or someone, "We ain't gon' miss the dancin'."

"Yours and Cap's weddin' didn't last all night," Detroit pointed out from his seat directly behind me. Leaning my head back, I bumped our scalps together and made him laugh.

"That's cause Will and I didn't have a weddin'," I admitted, glancing over as Rosada squealed happily. Cotton-Top had begun to tickle her belly. "We just let Uncle Wall marry us and called it a day. And how would you remember anyway? You were one at the time."

"I remember," he insisted cryptically and I bumped my head against his again, smiling at his bell like laughter. Soon the children fell into conversation amongst themselves and I spent the rest of the ride to my Uncle Anderson's property listening to their younger musings.

Before too long, we were pulling up outside the children's home and the cart was vibrating with their excitement. The front door and windows to the house were wide open, letting a breeze flow through the crowded room and carry laughter and dish clatter out to our ears. A large tent was set up on the far side of the house, white streamers and unlit lanterns hanging from its ends. I could feel myself starting to get as riled as my cousins.

"Hey there, Angel!"

Turning to look off to my left as I began to steer the cart off the main road, I waved at my Uncle Wall and his wife Jane as they too arrived from the church flanked by other packed carts. Victoria was with her parents for the first time in ages, her copper hair shining in the sunlight as she turned and nodded at me. I could only guess from the somber look on her face that Plyant had been forced into hiding –if not already arrested- due to the reward the McCoys had put on his head. I spared her a sympathetic grimace as I drew my cart to a halt.

"Yay!" Cotton whooped, his cry signaling for my cousins to all rush out of the cart, shouting out their own happy exclamations as I tried to maintain some type of order amongst them. Once I had obtained a promise from each of them to check-in with their mother and handed Rosada off to a still ill-tempered Mary, I felt I could finally breathe.

"I'll never know how my brothers put up with all that noise and then some."

I turned curiously, eyes landing on a stately woman with a head of curly auburn hair and thin framed glassed. With a breathy laugh, I hopped down from my cart seat and into the waiting arms of a woman I had not seen since my Pa's funeral.

"Aunt Martha!" I gushed happily, squeezing her to my breast as she rocked me from side to side, "It's so good to see you!"

"Me?" she chuckled, pulling away and waving a hand at me, "What about you? Every time I see you, you look more and more like your daddy. If your daddy had been more beautiful a course."

I blushed, preening in my aunt's attention as she continued to carry on about my fair hair and high cheek bones. Martha was someone Cotton-Top and I had seen rarely in our childhood, but she was always a welcome visit, bringing gifts and stories from further off states like New York. She had never married and so had no family tying her to any one place. She was an adventurer if I had ever had the sense to name one. Her tirade of compliments only ended when Uncle Wall was finally settled and called her over to receive a hug. The two siblings were soon wrapped in some long unfinished conversation and I decided to make my way through the festivities.

In the Hatfield house, it was one giant family reunion, faces I had not seen since either a funeral or some other unmemorable event crowding every open area. At the counter, Bad Lias and Good Lias were having a playful argument, the fifteen year age gap between them melting away as they laughed before their wives, Jane and Elizabeth. By the front window, my great uncles Basil and Jacob were calling back to their teen years and debating which one of them had out grown the other. Their wives, Nancy and Rebecca, were far off near the dining table fawning over Lavicy who was once again swollen in pregnancy.

I moved from huddle to huddle, greeting familiar faces and sharing information that could not have been passed on through letters. After all this time, some people still did not even know I had married William years back. My uncle Anderson the deacon feigned being hurt over not being asked to reside over the ceremony but kissed my cheek in congratulations all the same. His wife Polly was all a flutter with excitement for me, promising to send a very late wedding gift once they had returned home to Tennessee. Like so many, they had traveled from far off to come witness my cousin's wedding day. As I made to exit the house, nearly getting toppled over by my younger cousin Henry, I wondered briefly if this was how it would have been on my wedding day had William and I decided to stick with tradition.

Outside under the tent was the majority of my more closely associated family along with the wedding party. My uncles Ephraim and Floyd were making a go at picking up a beat and I wagered that soon their staggered tunes would be heard inside and draw out the rest of the guests. Passing by the food tables and stopping to smile and chat with Mariah's family briefly, I made my way to the edge of the tent where a handsome man in a black suit leaned against one of the poles.

"Ya know," I couldn't help but smile as Will started slightly before turning to me, "I think I'm partial to the white dress Mariah wore today," My husband smiled and allowed me to sidle up under his arm as I continued, "Think I would have liked to do that on our wedding day."

"Yes, well, Mariah's family is lucky they are wealthy enough to afford it," he intoned, leaning his head down to touch with mine as he breathed heavily. "Thought you was Nancy Glenn sneakin' up on me."

"She been doin' that a lot today?" I questioned, resting my head against his chest and winding my arms around his middle as he took to staring off into the wood again.

"She's incorrigible," the young Hatfield bemoaned, "It's like she don't even care I'm married."

I shrugged, not particularly threatened by Ms. Glenn since she was a cousin of Mariah's who was only in town for the wedding. "Maybe because you don't have a weddin' band," I murmured thoughtfully, picking up my husband's work hardened hand and examining it closely. He chuckled shortly around me and I felt a kiss fall into my hair which was combed back and plated today.

"Marryin' you on the spur of the moment seemed like a good idea at the time," he joked half-heartedly. I looked up and smiled at him, realizing how my many observations must sound.

It was true, since we had been married quickly with no planning or ceremony, Will and I had not been afforded certain traditions. I had been married in my casual long skirt and a blouse I had been gifted by my daddy. Will was in his work clothes. We had not had a great big reception where all our family was called from every corner of the states to acknowledge us. We had not thought ahead to go out and find a matching set of gold bands to place on our fingers either. We had simply gotten married and lived as man and wife from that day on.

I was moved to comfort Will with the knowledge that I did not need all the pomp and circumstance of having a proper wedding when the clatter from beneath the tent began to die down. We both turned to find the majority of the guests were now outside, crowding around the new couple whom were seated at the table meant for the wedding party. Devil Anse was lightly thrumming a spoon against this table and calling everyone's attention to him.

"Thank you kindly," he began once everyone had quieted down "To all of you for making the trip out here." People that had glasses raised them in acknowledgement. My uncle shuffled his feet then, sparing his third son a furtive glance before chucking lowly. "Ya know," he went on, his ever present pipe not marring his speech on this day, "For all the kids I've had married now…I do not believe I've ever made a weddin' day speech." There was a polite chuckle as a few people gave Will and Nancy teasing glances, painfully ignoring the missing brother. Johnse had not shown today, too angry and distant from his family after they expressed reluctance to have his wife present. Anderson Hatfield ducked his head, coming off shy for all the power and sway he held over the majority of the people present.

"As a parent there is…nothin' in life that makes you happier…than when your children find happiness themselves." Parents throughout the crowd smiled and tucked their children closer, Mariah's mother leaning in to place a kiss in her ebony curls. "I have been lucky enough to have many children and see them experience the joys of life in many different ways." He turned slowly, gracing every face of his immediate family with a knowing look. He paused on me and my husband and we straightened. "I have seen my second oldest, William, fall for, woo, and marry the love of his life, my niece Abigail." I blushed as many smiles turned on us, Robert E raising a wave from his spot beside his bride. I returned the wave, still tucked into Will's side. Their father went on.

"I watched Robert E pine after Mariah for nearly three years before ever workin' up the courage to talk to her." Here the newlyweds laughed and blushed, hugging each other closer as their guests called out playful taunts. The devil laughed at his third son, waiting for the noise to settle before he continued. "I have watched each and every one of my children grow into their own person, none of 'em comin' out just the way I'd expected." Another laugh. "But that's alright, because I'm proud of 'em either way."

I sniffled lowly, not realizing until that moment that my eyes were watering. Will wordlessly pulled a hand kerchief from his breast pocket and allowed me to wipe sheepishly at my face.

My uncle cleared his throat loudly and I dared to imagine that perhaps he needed a bit of cloth to wipe at his eyes too. "That all bein' said," he went on, hands now placed at his hips as he frowned thoughtfully at the ground, "I wish Robert E and Mariah nothin' but the best from here on out. " He turned to face the couple. "And I'm just happy to welcome you into the family, darlin'."

The crowd burst into applause as the teary eyed girl exited her seat to hug her new father-in-law. As Will released me to join in, I found myself unable to as I watched Mariah speak quickly with my uncle before returning to her seat, gold band flashing on her finger. I was beyond happy for her and my cousin, but I could feel a hot ball of jealousy settling in my stomach and I shivered. As the guests all began to move off to the sides and Jim Vance helped Mariah's father bring a small piano down from his cart, I studied this new feeling that had taken over me.

Though I had been ready to assure Will that I was fine with how our union had been authorized and carried out, I could not help but gaze yearningly out at the hoard of people that had flocked here to fawn over my cousin and his new wife. I had never imagined a dream wedding at any point in my life, but there were some things that went without saying when you quietly admitted you wanted to be married someday. Things like a simple wedding ring to ensure every woman far and wide realized your man was taken. Things like a reception filled with your family and closest friends congratulating you and giving you gifts. Things like a speech from your father-in-law welcoming you to the family.

She was getting everything I had never known I wanted.

"Abi?" I jumped, ripped from my sinful musings as Will called my attention to him. By now one of my uncles had taken the seat at the piano and was playing out the chords to a familiar hymn. I blinked up at Will. "Dance with me?"

I tried to remember the last time Will and I had danced, if ever, and decided it would have had to be when we were still in our adolescence since it had certainly not been any time recently. I agreed, forcing a smile as I took his hand and let him lead me out onto the dance floor. Looking back towards the piano and main table, I noticed my Aunt Jenny leaning over one of her brother-in-law's arm to read the hymn. Will brought my arms up around his shoulders and circled his at my hips as Floyd's pretty little wife began to sing.

_What a fellowship, what a joy divine,  
Leaning on the everlasting arms;  
What a blessedness, what a peace is mine,  
Leaning on the everlasting arms._

Will and I were close. So close that my cheek brushed his suit without me having to lean in at all as I gazed around us. We were turning slowly around the designated dancing area and I spotted many other couples in similar poses throughout. Rob and Mariah were having their first dance not far off from Nancy and Charlie Mullins who were speaking quietly in the large space between their faces due to Charlie's tall stature. I noticed one of Mariah's kin trying to interest my Aunt Martha in a dance and I shut my eyes.

"Abi?"

_Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms;  
Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms._

Jenny's voice was beautiful as I had learned years before, and I hated to speak over it, but I would not deny William anything. Not raising my cheek from his chest nor opening my cyan eyes, I answered him.

"Yes?"

_O how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way,  
Leaning on the everlasting arms;  
O how bright the path grows from day to day,  
Leaning on the everlasting arms._

"Do you regret not havin' all this?" one of his arms left my hip, I imagine to gesture at everything that surrounded us. "All this celebration and what not over a weddin'?"

I sighed deeply in my chest, half-heartedly cursing God for making Will and I so perfect for each other that he could almost read my thoughts some days. Turning my face up to him, I finally opened my eyes and met his mix-matched ones in a serious gaze.

_Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms;  
Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms._

"No," I said as honestly as I could, feeling far lighter as I swayed here in my husband's arms. He frowned down at me concernedly and I sighed. "I'm a lil' jealous, yes," I admitted, "But I've never been to a weddin' like this before." It was true. Nancy's wedding to John Vance had been a humble ceremony/reception and that was the only other one I had been to. "If I hadn't seen any a this, it;d never even cross my mind that we needed somethin' silly like…a white dress or a big ole' party afterwards."

The second Hatfield nodded, seeing reason and truth in this as our swaying came to a slow and steady halt. He brought one hand up towards my neck, cupping my jaw line where my whip lashes from Jim Vance had long since faded in the last year. "So ya don't wish wed' done any a this?"

I smiled at him.

_What have I to dread, what have I to fear,  
Leaning on the everlasting arms;  
I have blessed peace with my Lord so near,  
Leaning on the everlasting arms._

"I wish I'd done everythin' on earth with you," I confided thickly, reaching up my own hand to brush lovingly at his cheek. Lord, but he looked down right handsome. "But I wouldn't change one second of our life together, Cap Hatfield."

My husband smiled, his mustache tilting in that way I loved as he pulled me in for a kiss. All around us, our old and new family members celebrated and danced and laughed and loved and in that moment, it was not hard to pretend it had all been for us.

_Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms;  
Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms._


End file.
